Golden Eyes 2: Icha Icha Return
by Shouraku
Summary: Kakashi's wild student reemerges, and now the secret is out. Kaka x OC.
1. Cold Time in the Hot Town Tonight

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

_Love is for children. I owe him a debt._

_-Natasha Romanoff_

_..._

Hushed whispers and mumbles filled the room. Kakashi strained to recognize the voices.

"...defrost...what to..."

He forced open his non-Sharingan eye and looked around the room. The white walls were harsh and uninviting. The smell of alcohol and ramen overpowered his senses, causing him to gag and cough.

"He's waking up. I don't believe it!" A voice whispered.

The room was beginning to come into focus, as was the outline of Tsunade and Naruto. They stared at his glazed-over expression as they leaned against the bed. Somehow, he had ended up in a Konoha hospital.

"Give the man some dignity and bring him a mask_,_" Naruto ordered in an authoritative tone.

Within minutes a blushing nurse rushed and handed Kakashi his old mask. He instantly yanked it over over his face, soaking in the calm relaxation that it brought him. The last thing he remembered was the feeling of his body dissolving with Riba on the battle field.

Naruto grinned as he pulled at a loose string on his Hokage robe. Combined with the mature sound of his voice, he was the model of a Rokudaime. Kakashi was overtaken with pride at seeing that his former student was living his life's dream, though apparently with Tsunade still around to guide him.

Sensing the desire for privacy, the nurse winked seductively at Kakashi and left the room. Before the lock on the door had even engaged, Naruto had leapt across the bed and threw his arms around Kakashi's neck, squeezing him to the point of chocking.

"Oh god! We were sure that you were dead. We even had a funeral, but no one showed up except Sakura and I."

Kakashi sighed as he began to pry Naruto off of him. Obviously his mature demeanor was a well practiced facade. "Only you and Sakura came to my funeral?" He asked dejectedly.

"Well, we invited all your friends, but Genma and Asuma said that you deserved what you got for letting yourself be dissolved, and Tsunade was too drunk to get out of bed."

"Hungover, not drunk," Tsunade corrected.

"Whatever, either way your name is on the memorial. You're officially dead! I don't know what to do about it now since we can't remove the engraving. I suppose we could just leave it there until you kamikaze yourself again, or die of old age. What are you, like fifty or something?"

Kakashi groaned, "I'm not even close to being old enough for the Shinobi Retirement Palace. Thirties still, I think. Wait, how long was I unconscious for?"

Tsunade took a swig from an unlabeled water bottle that Kakashi suspected was not-so-subtly hiding alcohol, "three years."

"Three years!? It took you three years to get me back?"

"We didn't get you back," Tsunade said as she waved her hand, sloshing part of her drink onto the bed. "We thought you were dead remember? After three years of being a nin-cicle, Uindo apparently decided to return you to us."

"Nin-cicle? You mean frozen?"

"It appears that way, like you were kept frozen in some kind of storage facility. For whatever reason, they made a couple of improvements and dropped you off at the border, naked and sealed in a plastic bag like a chicken filet."

The numbness was subsiding, and feeling was beginning to return to his extremities. He became painfully aware that, for some reason, the medical staff had forgone the customary hospital dressing gown and just thrown a blanket over his naked body. Feeling exposed, he pulled the thin blanket up to his neck and silently swore at the young nurse's lack of shame. "What do you mean by improvements?"

"They seem to have repaired most of your war wounds and removed a few bits of senbon metal that had been logged in your upper thigh since that time you and Genma got drunk and beat each other up on Hokage Mountain."

He rubbed the scar over his left eye, surprised to find that they hadn't removed it as well.

Tsunade chuckled drunkenly, "oh yeah, I almost forgot, open both your eyes."

Kakashi slowly open his other eye and looked around the room. His surroundings looked plain. Everything had seemed to slow down and he wasn't receiving the detailed visual information he was used to. "They took my Sharingan! The bastards replaced my eye!"

Tsunade laid a chakra laced hand on his chest and pushed him onto his back, halting his tirade, "no one took your eye. They just repaired it so that you can turn your Sharingan on and off like an Uchiha. As I said, improvements."

"Why would they do that? What the hell happened around here?"

Tsunade stood, "Naruto, please handle his rambling and meet me back at Hokage Tower. We do still have work today." She smiled at Kakashi as she walked out the door, "relax Copy-ninja, the world is far better now than when you left it."

Naruto grinned lopsidedly, "she's right. Everything's great around here!"

"Answer my question," Kakashi said sternly.

Naruto sighed, "I went to Uindo shortly after the war, but no one would talk to me except Neji, who gave me some of Riba's personal notes. I combined them with the report that you left for me and had it published and sold throughout the five nations. It was a huge success and immediately spawned a public uprising against the elders. They tried to hold on to power for a while, but were eventually forced to resign when everyone stopped following their orders. I run Konoha now."

"And Riba?"

"Is classified."

"Is she still alive?" He asked tersely.

Naruto's smiled faded and his eyes narrowed, "do you really think that Riba recombined in Uindo just to die? That she could be killed so easily? The elders only resigned a month ago. I wonder who would have known that it was too dangerous to return you to Konoha while they were still in charge..." He walked over to the rooms' only window and looked out over the village, "you know, compiling and publishing your book gave me the desire to begin writing myself. I brought you a signed copy of my first book." He dug around inside his long white coat and eventually pulled out a familiar looking blue book and tossed it onto Kakashi's lap.

"_Icha Icha Return..._Is this what I think it is?" Kakashi asked.

"Of course, I plan to continue Jiraiya's legacy. The book is full color, and it's selling off the shelves. It goes out of stock almost soon as it's delivered."

Kakashi's hummed in delight at the thought that the _Icha Icha_ series may not have died with Jiraiya. He stared lovingly at the cover, "so, why is there a picture of a half empty bottle on the cover?"

Naruto shifted awkwardly, "look at the bottle's label, see the circle with a slash through it? It wouldn't be _Icha Icha_ without that symbol now would it?" He giggled nervously.

"No I mean, why a bottle at all?"

"Well _Golden Eyes_ became popular around the time I started writing _Icha Icha_..."

Kakashi's brow furrowed as he suddenly regretted being so thorough in his report, "this wouldn't happen to be a Uindo Rum bottle would it?"

Naruto sat on the windowsill and leaned back, as if hoping to fall out and escape, "now listen Kakashi, I know this looks bad, but I changed the names so no one will ever know it was you. The fact that a rum bottle appears in both novels probably just looks like a coincidence."

Kakashi nodded reluctantly as he opened to a random page, bending the stiff spine as he read:

_Ria squirmed at the sudden contact of the cool glass_

_ inside her, but Kachi quickly rested his hand on her chest and held_

_ her in place as he slowly pulled out the bottle and..._

He stared at the detailed color images for a moment before gently closing the cover and silently glaring at Naruto.

"So Kakashi, what do you think?" Naruto asked, trailing off into a whisper.

...

Kakashi stumbled out of the hospitals' main entrance and onto the streets of Konoha. Before he could make a break for his apartment, Genma ran up from behind, "Wow man, welcome back to the world! I was sure that I lost you at the Battle of Konoha Hills." He stared for a moment, "you look really strange with one gray and one black eye."

"Not as strange as you're going to look with two black eyes," he grumbled.

"Okay okay, I get it, you're a little grouchy. I'd be too if someone stuffed me naked in a trash bag for three years then left me out in the woods."

"It wasn't a trash bag, it was a medical grade cryogenic...thing."

"So like a freezer bag? The kind you put leftover sandwiches in?"

Kakashi stopped in his tracks, "what are you carrying?"

Genma looked down at his hand as if surprised to find something in it, "oh yeah, I almost forgot. Someone threw this out of a window at the hospital." He chuckled as he shoved the slightly damaged blue book into Kakashi's hip pack, "speaking of books, _Golden Eyes_ took down the government! Well played my friend."

"Why thank you Genma, that means a lot..."

"Too bad _Icha Icha Return_ took down your reputation."

"I'm sure people understand that it's not real," Kakashi said with more hope than certainty.

"Actually, because _Golden Eyes_ is a true story, everyone thinks that _Icha Icha Return_ is too."

"So, you're saying that everyone in Konoha thinks I'm a pervert?"

Genma paused, "you're not?"

"No!...well...no."

"You sure?"

"_Icha Icha Return_ is an over exaggerated, cliché, pornographic version of my life."

"How do you know? Have you read it?"

"I just got it an hour ago."

"Then at least read it before you condemn it..."

Suddenly a squealing shout erupted from a nearby crowed. Two ANBU tore through the sea of people, each dragging a disheveled Konoha shinobi by the hair. The plain white ANBU masks were a familiar yet disturbing sight. Hunter-nin were considered a necessary evil by the village, a dirty profession that few chose to enter into willingly.

They dropped the apprehended shinobi outside of the ANBU Headquarters Processing Center and ponded on the large double doors. Almost instantly, two traditionally dressed ANBU guards poked their mask covered heads out the door. The male hunter-nin helped drag the captives inside while a guard counted out a large stack of money, placing each bill in the female hunter-nin's hand.

Kakashi watched intently, "I haven't seen hunter-nin in a long time, and never publicly."

"Uchiha Madara was a bad influence. The rise of the Akatsuki spawned a number of copycat groups. Shinobi from the five nations that were on the verge of defecting anyway, were given a model for their treason. Business is booming for hunter-nin, retrieving defectors with delusions of grandeur."

"I was told that Konoha was better than ever. Seeing hunter-nin in the streets makes me question that."

"I think Naruto and Tsunade would disagree. The war brought out the worst in Konoha, but at least now we know where the worst is hiding. They hand picked this generation of hunter-nin to weed out the bad apples. Besides, it's good work from what I hear. No reports to file, cash payment on the spot, anonymity, you may want to consider joining if the publicity becomes too much for you."

"I could never be a hunter-nin. It takes a dark person to hunt your own people, justified or not."

"Yeah, but you also get to work with her," Genma purred as he pointed at the ANBU woman's tightly covered ass.

Kakashi lazily shook his head, "hunter-nin are usually crazy."

"I like 'em that way, dark and crazy."

"Go ahead and try her. I'll make sure to put that on your headstone."

"You're in no position to be lecturing me about crazy last words."

Kakashi winced; Genma was completely correct and had burned him hard. He ignored the senbon sucking shinobi's victory giggles, "could you just shut up and help me get drunk or something?"

Genma smirked, "now you're speaking my language, to The Little Boxer!"

...

"...so like Saran Wrap?" Asuma asked in a sarcastically concerned voice.

"No, like a medical case..." Kakashi trailed off, irritated at having to retell the painfully embarrassing story for the fourth time.

"You do realize that Uindo uses those _cases _to deep freeze bodies for long term storage in the Resurrection Parts Facility. You probably spent the last three years tagged and bagged next to thousands of corpses."

"Corpse-cicles!" Gemna slurred.

"This isn't a joke. They treated my body like spare parts in their creepy warehouse of reanimated death." Kakashi slid his hand over the sticky surface of the unfinished wooden table. Nothing in The Little Boxer ever changed, and he would't be surprised if the decor was original to the building. The smoke stained paneling on the walls and low lighting was making it very hard for him to navigate. Using the table's surface as a guide he attempted to grab his grimy sake glass, missing it by mere inches.

"Man, you've only had one drink and you're too sloshed to function?" Asuma said as he slid the glass into Kakashi's hand with his index finger.

"I haven't had depth perception since I was a teenager, at least not without it being chakra laced. Cut me some slack."

Genma giggled, "no, please continue, I could watch you fumble around all night."

"You know, when I woke up in the hospital this is not how imagined my reunion with you guys would go."

Asuma stabbed his cigarette into an overflowing ashtray with single swift motion, "when you woke up in the hospital, I didn't expect you to come for your welcome back drink acting like you've been wronged."

Kakashi folded his arms, "I'm dying to know how you figure that I haven't."

"Listen, I know that Riba looks like an asshole right now, but that's only because you don't understand Uindo."

"What don't I understand?"

Asuma leaned across the table and whispered, "let me tell you what I think happened to you at the Battle of Konoha Hills."

Genma suddenly seemed to sober up and leaned in, followed reluctantly by Kakashi.

"Riba defeated Madara's tailed beasts, but was badly injured in the process. She probably knew that she would die without medical attention, so she decided to disintegrate and travel to Uindo where they would know how to treat her. However, you showed up and dissolved with her. She had to have known that the elders would be hunting for you after _Golden Eyes_ was published, so she decided not to send you back to Konoha until the elders were removed from power."

"Yes, but why freeze me? What would be the point?"

"To keep you from seeing whatever she's hiding," Asuma said. "It took three years for Naruto to become Hokage and dethrone the elders. During that time, she must have done something that she couldn't afford to let you see. Deep freezing you kept you away from the elders while still letting her move forward with her plan."

"And her plan was?"

"Something _sexy,_" Genma interrupted.

"I seriously doubt that. I've already slept with her, what would she possibly have to hide from me now?" Kakashi retorted.

Genma poured himself another glass of sake, "something sexy that you wouldn't approve of?"

Asuma shrugged, "Or maybe it has nothing to do with you. Maybe it's something that she doesn't want Konoha to know about."

The barmaid walked over, shaking her hips below her short skirt. She wiped down the old bottle that she was carrying and set it on the table.

"Sorry beautiful, we didn't order this stuff," Genma said as he winked shamelessly.

"I know honey. The women at the other table sent it over."

The three men simultaneously looked across the bar at a table of Chunin. They giggled sweetly as they waved and pouted their young lips at Kakashi.

Kakashi picked up the bottle and dusted off the label. His heart sank as he realize that it was rum, "is that the only thing people remember about _Golden Eyes_?"

Asuma chuckled, "no, but it's the best part of _Icha Icha Return_."

Genma grabbed the bottle, "whatever, I'm going to drink it. I read that it's actually pretty good."

"Put me back in the freezer," Kakashi groaned.


	2. Stiff Drink

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

_Ria's obsession was insatiable. She dreamed endlessly of Kachi, _

_wanting nothing more than to dedicate her life to winning his heart. _

_It was a pursuit that consumed her entirely. _

_Nothing was more important..._

"Put that damn book down and pay attention!" Tsunade snapped.

Kakashi retuned the book to his hip pouch and lazily folding has hands in his lap. Naruto seemed content to let Kakashi continue to read through the briefing, and only looked up when Tsunade tapped him on the shoulder. Kakashi wondered what it must feel like to have Tsunade hovering over him all day, scrutinizing his every move from her seat directly behind his desk.

Kakashi donned his characteristic eye crease, "what can I do for my Hokages today?"

Tsunade reached over Naruto's shoulder and slammed her hand on the desk, her body pushing Naruto onto the edge of his chair, "I think you need to get your ass back to the hospital for observation, but Naruto seems to think that you're fit to return to work, so we've struck a compromise."

Naruto scooted his chair forward, "we'll give you a research mission, but nothing involving combat until we're sure that you're fully recovered with no lasting side effects."

Kakashi sighed, "research? Not even reconnaissance?"

"It's very important research I'll have you know," Tsunade replied indignantly. "While you were on ice, we developed a new chemical that blocks chakra. Drink it, and your chakra will pool in the center of your chest until you release it. No one outside of the Hyuuga clan can sense chakra that deep inside a body, so it pretty much renders your chakra invisible."

He nodded, "making it substantially easier to sneak up on someone. The chemical is therefore invaluable."

"I'm glad you grasp that. It has yet to be field tested, so we'd like you to see how effective it is against our ANBU border patrols. Treat it like a vacation, take Genma with you if you want. When you return, we can talk about getting you back on S-rank missions."

"Can't I take Asuma instead?"

"I'm afraid not. Asuma and Asuma Jr. are already on a mission."

"What about the Ferocious Five...er...Four?"

"You're taking Genma! This is not a request," Tsunade said.

"Do you really want to give Genma the ability to sneak up on female ANBU?" Kakashi protested.

"No, which is why we're sending you to keep an eye on him."

"If I do this, then I want a guarantee that the next S-rank mission that comes along is mine. I need to get back to work,for the sake of my sanity."

Tsunade nodded and waved dismissively, as if she were still the Hokage. Her typical _whatever you want, I don't care _attitude was surprisingly comforting to Kakashi, though anything is comforting to someone who is surprised to be alive. Naruto gave him an apologetic glance as he headed for the door.

...

"...and then she started screaming at me," Genma said.

"Well maybe if she hadn't caught you with her mother," Kakashi replied dryly.

"How the hell was I suppose to know that they were related? They look nothing alike."

"Their last names didn't tip you off?"

"Don't be ridiculous, I never ask for names..."

Kakashi dropped his backpack onto the forest floor and began to rummage through his supplies, "maybe if you payed more attention, you wouldn't look like a player and they wouldn't badmouth you to their friends. Which in turn, might get you laid even more."

"You dare call me a player after you slept with twice as many women in half the time? Don't act like you've forgotten what you were like before the war."

"Oh I remember, it's when I learned how to keep them coming back, mostly by being the opposite of you."

"Touché," Genma relented.

Kakashi pulled out his research notebook and opened the leather bound volume, "over fifty people and only two could identify our approach. What is that? A 96% success rate?"

"Um, yeah sure?"

"And the two who discovered us were Hyuuga, which isn't surprising. I'm amazed that we can just walk up behind people without being noticed. It's a shame that people rely so much on chakra that they fail to use their other senses."

"You do realize that this isn't an S-rank mission right? You don't have to take it so seriously."

"A mission is a mission, drink up and we'll go find our next target." Kakashi returned the book to his bag and pulled out two vials of the putrid liquid. Though unappealing to the palate, only a small quality was needed to be effective. Kakashi ingested the mixture and tried to prevent his throat muscles from expelling it, "are we in the Sound Country?"

Genma coughed and choked, "It used to be Oto, but since Orochimaru's death, Konoha has taken it over."

"Yeah, well I'm not familiar with the new territory. Do you know where the next ANBU camp is?"

"No idea."

The forest was dense and coved with long snaking vines that impeded their movement. The humidity was high and Kakashi was painfully reminded of the trip to the Northern Fifty Base. Now, more than ever, he longed to have the Ferocious Five at his side. Riba and her team would have been more than familiar with the terrain.

They slowed pace as they began to feel the presence of chakra and moved silently through the forest. They stood directly over the center of the chakra's location, but saw no one. Kakashi began to shuffle the foliage with the edge of his boot.

"You think they're hiding?" Genma asked.

"I think they're underground. Seven or eight feet a least," he said as he tapped the ground with his heel. "There must be a hollow structure below us. See if you can find an entrance."

Various snakes and other small creatures lurked around them as they tore through the forest floor, and eventually stumbled upon a small mound of dirt that appeared to have been recently disturbed. Beside it, barely visible under the brush, was a round metal hatch just large enough for a person to fit through. The rusted metal alongs its rim had been broken, its seedy condition causing both men to instinctively pull out a kunai as they slid through the small opening and into the cave below.

The clay walls were wide enough to walk through and were coated with a phosphoric paint that glowed dimly, illuminating their path. As they approached the source of the chakra, they began to pass by a series of wooden doors, each cracked and degraded from years of neglect.

They could hear shuffling. Creeping up to the door, Kakashi stared though one of the small cracks while pointing towards a nearby one for Genma to look through.

The room was dark, barely lit by the glowing paint. Various medical supplies covered shelves that stretched from floor to celling and curved around the room. In the center sat a decrepit looking surgical table. Two Konoha ANBU moved swiftly from shelf to shelf, stirring up small clouds of dust as they cleaned off whatever objects grabbed their attention.

"What is this?" The taller one asked as he held up a small vial, his voice muffled by his white hunter-nin mask. He swirled the clear liquid around the inside the glass, "it doesn't have a label."

The other ANBU looked over her shoulder, "I send you to the most acclaimed academy in the world and you don't even know what that is?"

"No, what is it?"

"I have no idea."

He laughed slightly as she grabbed his wrist and guided his hand up to her face to inspect the vial.

Genma leaned over and whispered, "strange behavior for hunter-nin. I surprised that they even talk."

The ANBU froze, the man watched as the women looked around the room.

Kakashi whispered, "I think they know we're here. One may be a Hyuuga, though if that's the case, they should have discovered us before now."

In a single swift movement the woman cracked the vial in half and used the man's hand as a leaver to lift up her mask. She poured the liquid, along with a few glass shards, down her throat and reached for her sword. Kakashi activated his Sharingan as he and Genma plowed through the door.

Chakra filled his eye, allowing him to rapidly soak in the surroundings. His breathing stopped, shock pulling the air out of his lungs. A golden Mangekyou Sharingan stared directly at him. On her upper arms he could see parts of the chakra filled tattoos that weaved around her neck and down to her wrists. Steam hissed from her sword as it seared the water vapor in the air, blade o which was pointed straight at his head. Her companion had his sword pointed at Genma. Chakra tattoos that looked like circular bands wrapped around his arms, not unlike a series of connected shackles.

Genma looked sideways at Kakashi, "hey look, it's Riba! Who we're glad to see, right?"

Kakashi lowered his head slightly, looking up at her with a cold stare, "who is your companion?"

"Kakashi, maybe this isn't the time," Genma interrupted.

"He has Uindo tattoos, yet you're the only Uindo who also an ANBU, so who is your companion?"

Riba lowered her sword a degree, "an exception. He is an ANBU and my Shadow Assassin apprentice. His induction was approved by the Hokage."

"Which means that we're all friends now, right?" Genma said in a mockingly sing-song voice.

"Riba, who is your companion?" Kakashi asked threateningly.

"By the joint Konoha-Uindo Treaty, Shadow Assassins are guaranteed the right to remain anonymous."

"Except that you're both ANBU in Konoha territory. While you work for us, you're required to do as your superior shinobi command. I outrank you, therefore I order you to reveal your apprentice."

Riba nodded reluctantly at her partner. The man pulled off his mask and threw it at Kakashi's face.

"Well, well, Uchiha Sasuke. What a semi-pleasant surprise," Kakashi mocked.

"It can't be...Naruto killed him," Genma gasped.

Sasuke grinned darkly as he pulled off his glove with his teeth, exposing the gaping scar on his finger from where he had bled enough for Riba to have him illegally blood-registered for resurrection.

"Genma, you guard Sasuke. Riba, outside!" Kakashi commanded.

She stared at Kakashi emotionlessly and remained still. Defiant in her silence.

"I'm not asking. You will come outside _now_," Kakashi growled over his shoulder as he walked out the door. He traversed the long hallway and leapt through the metal hatch into the forrest. The moment that he leaned against a nearby tree, Riba materialized before him.

"Can Sasuke dissolve as well?" He asked, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"It's required for entrance into the Shadow Assassin program," Riba said nonchalantly.

Kakashi's eyes drifted over her body. Her human form was unchanging, slender yet curvy in her ANBU uniform. He remembered Sasuke's eyes as being dark gray, and they had remained that way for a while after they had been transplanted into Riba, yet it appeared that over time her dark chakra had bleached them to a dull gold. When activated, her Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan was a blend of Sasuke's original star pattern and her curled design. It was unsettling to see a part of him in her, "you do realize that you've resurrected a dangerous man and made him five times more powerful than he was before he died," Kakashi said tersely.

"Dangerous? Which Konoha shinobi has Sasuke killed?"

"He attacked Sakura, Naruto, and I with every intent of killing us."

"Intent doesn't constitute a crime. My understanding is that you hunted him down and initiated the brawl, yet you're surprised that he defended himself?"

"You know, I'm beginning to wonder whose side you're on."

"Don't even think of trying to shift this onto me. Am I wrong?"

"No, he hasn't killed any Konoha shinobi...that I know of," Kakashi relented.

"You and I both know that the base of this argument is personal, so let's keep it about us."

His body began to tense as he fought to appear calm, "this stopped being just about us the minute you decided to involve my crazed former student!"

"He's not crazed. He just had to be straightened out."

"And that was worth it to you? Worth throwing me in the cooler so that you could raise Sasuke? Why? So that you can fuck him every time you miss Itachi?" He instantly regretted his words. It was the lowest possible blow, and he had said it solely to elicit a reaction. He hated how she could remain perfectly calm while he raged, that was usually his role.

She remained stoic, refusing to take the bait. Kakashi calmed, knowing that he was far more mature and intelligent than he was acting.

She walked over and leaned next to him, "the fact that you were willing to die at my side is not lost on me, but I wasn't dying. I was badly injured when I destroyed Madara's demonic statue and returned to Uindo for medical attention. I hadn't planed for you to accompany me, so when your unconscious body showed up, I wasn't sure what to do with you, so I sent you to the hospital."

"Where they repaired my eye."

"Yes, I was in a semi-conscious state myself, so I just ordered them to repair everything that they perceived as an injury. The only reason that you still have the scar over your eye was for identification purposes."

"And Sasuke?"

"I had made arrangements with Sasuke to teleport to his body and bring him in for resurrection in the event that he should die. When I got the signal and showed up, Naruto was coming off of a Kyuubi induced rage. He _begged_ me to save Sasuke. We devised a plan, he treated you as dead and published your memoirs, and when anyone questioned your demise, he threw them off track. In the meantime, I had Sasuke resurrected and started him on a new path."

"Why did you hide this from me? I could have helped you."

"I wasn't hiding from you, I was hiding you from everyone else. The elders started a manhunt to find proof of your death the minute that Naruto emerged with _Golden Eyes. _They literally searched all over the world. There was nowhere you would have been safe."

"Except in Uindo, which is perfectly isolated."

"Yes, but I couldn't let Sasuke know you were there. His vendetta was insatiable back then, it took years for him to reset his life goals."

Kakashi grinned, "Sasuke can't kill me."

"Sasuke killed _Itachi_. Don't underestimate him."

"You could have just let Sasuke stay dead."

She glared firmly, "no Kakashi, I couldn't. No more than you could let any of your friends die. My life belongs to the Uchiha, Hyuuga, and Uindo. I will defend and protect them until my last breath. I am the Sovereign for life."

"So what about us?"

She laughed frustratedly, "ight now one of the last of my clan is in that cave. He is under my supervision and I have staked my entire reputation on his success. I have only just gotten him to the point where I can take him to Konoha without him attempting to demolish the place and assassinate everyone."

"So he takes precedence over me?"

"What do you want Kakashi?" She snapped. "To go live in a farming village together in a quaint little house? To give up being a shinobi? Because if not, then we have to work with who and what we are. I'm an elite ninja and the Sovereign leader of Uindo, what are you?"

Her words hit hard. He wasn't the settle down type like Asuma or a hopeless romantic like Sakura, and he hadn't really worked out what shape their relationship would take, "honestly, you had three more years to think about this than I have."

"Well, you have time. Despite what you and I may feel, he is my apprentice and I'm fully responsible for him."

Sasuke had always been a sore subject, he had been placed in team seven specifically so that Kakashi could keep him from going rogue. For a long time, everyone assumed that Sasuke was completely lost, but apparently Riba had found a way to reel him back in. He hadn't destroyed Konoha, and he seemed to follower her orders.

Kakashi sighed, "I failed him as a teacher and have been trying to settle things with him ever since. I would rather have him live successfully than die at my hands, or me at his." He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close, "is there anything else that I should know?"

"To him, people are either Uchiha or they're not, and he blames everyone who isn't an Uchiha for ordering Itachi to eliminate our clan."

"So, everyone in Konoha then?"

"Yes, even people who were only tangentially related to the incident."

"Is there any good news?"

"He is now subject to Uindo law. He can't attack a member of another nation except in self defense, or if ordered to do so. However, he may try to bait you."

"You should know that I'm too smart to fall for that."

"That's the other issue. Given the chance, he will use your arrogance against you. He has become outrageously powerful and is equally as talented. Keep that in mind."

Kakashi didn't answer, but instead pulled down his mask and kissed her softly on the forehead. The warmth remained on his lips even after he pulled his mask back up and headed for the cave. His hand traveled down to the small of her back as he guided her down the hallway, "why did you and Sasuke come down here in the first place?"

She leaned into his touch, "this is one of Orochimaru's old hideouts. Sasuke and I happened to be in the area, so he suggested that we stop by and see if there's anything worth liberating."

"By liberate you mean steal."

"If by steal you mean loot like a pirate."

They returned to find Sasuke digging through boxes and Genma standing awkwardly with his back against the wall, untrustingly watching.

Sasuke stood up and tossed Riba a small black bag, "seems suspicious."

She untied the leather bindings and poured its contents into her hand. The rings glimmered dully in the faint light, "Akatsuki rings," she said as she turned them over between her fingers.

"They could be forgeries," Genma suggested.

"If there were ten of them then I would be inclined to agree, but the fact that ones' missing suggests that they're authentic."

"How do you figure?"

She dropped the rings back into the bag and tossed it to Sasuke. They watched as she pulled at her fingerless gloves and removed a light blue ring that had been hidden just underneath the fabric on her left little finger, "this is the tenth ring. It originally belonged to Orochimaru, but was given to me by Pain when I became an Akatsuki member."

"So Madara was here?" Sasuke asked.

Riba coughed lightly, "it appears that way."

"Why? There's nothing here of value."

"You're right, which would suggest that he got what he came her for, didn't find what he wanted, or values something here that's worthless to us."

Kakashi surveyed the heaps of supplies, looking for anything that might be valuable to a criminal. She was probably right, next to Sakura, she had always been his brightest student.

"Why would Madara leave the rings behind?" Genma asked as he joined the search.

Riba choked slightly and coughed, "they're worthless now that the Akatsuki has dissolved. If he was in a hurry he might not have bothered taking..." She began to cough violently and her body jetted forward from the momentum. Kakashi reflexively grabbed her waist and held her up as she began to heave.

Sasuke instantly stepped forward, narrowing his eyes at Kakashi as if debating whether to push him away. His glare remained unwaveringly as he slowly reached out for her. Kakashi pulled her chocking body against his chest, out of his reach.

"Sasuke...bottle," Riba wheezed as she grabbed her throat.

Her voice snapped Sasuke into action. He snatched the nearest empty container, and held up her chin while putting the bottle to her mouth.

Kakashi subtly activated his Sharingan, suddenly grateful that he no longer had to fiddle with his hitae-ate. Chakra flowed into his eye and the world seemed to slow down as he began to absorb the intricacies of Sasuke's movements. Genma carefully stepped behind Kakashi, fully expecting to help him pull her away and run.

Sasuke's eyes never left Kakashi as Riba jerked hard and coughed up a chakra covered ball of liquid into the bottle. Sasuke pulled it away and reluctantly searched the shelves for a lid. Riba patted Kakashi on the arm, and when he let go, she joined Sasuke.

"Will you two please tell us what the hell just happened!?" Genma demanded.

"When you and Kakashi first arrived, I could sense your presence but not who you were. I needed to keep the liquid from falling into enemy hands in case it was valuable," Riba said.

"So you knowingly drank an unknown substance?" Kakashi asked dryly.

Though his tone was emotionless, Riba had known Kakashi long enough to recognize when he was reverting back to teacher mode and talking down to her. "My chakra rejects dangerous substances," her calm demeanor refusing to acknowledge his condescension, "I think it's an odorless, tasteless, poison. If it fooled my body for this long then it must also be slow acting and extremely difficult to detect. I would have coughed up a lesser poison in minutes." She nodded to Sasuke who capped the bottle and slid it inside his white ANBU vest.

Genma eyed the small bump in the fabric where the bottle sat, "if you're right, I don't think Madara would have left it behind."

"Maybe he didn't know what it was, or it wasn't what he came for."

Sasuke eyed Kakashi, "more importantly, what are _you_ here for?"

"We're testing a chemical that masks chakra. Basically, we drink it and sneak up on people."

Riba chuckled, "how many women did you try that on?"

"All of them," Genma winked.

"Well, I hope that goes well for you." With a smile and a small wave Riba walked out the door with Sasuke following closes behind, leaving Kakashi and Genma to stare at each other questioningly.

"Hey," Genma yelled as he leaned into the hall, "where are you guys going all of a sudden?"

Riba looked over her shoulder as she approached the cave's opening, "I'm taking this to Tsunade. It's much too valuable to leave with anyone else."

Kakashi and Genma ran down the hall after them, and pulled themselves through the metal hatch. "Stop!" Kakashi commanded. "We'll come with you. We need to turn in our reports anyway."

Sasuke whispered something to Riba. Irritated by their secrecy, Kakashi stepped between them, "what was that?"

"I was just explaining to Sasuke how you outrank us, so we have to follow your orders," Riba replied.

"I'm glad the two of you understand that," Kakashi said as he waved his hand in a forward manner. Riba and Genma obediently leapt onto the closest tree branch and off into the forest.

Sasuke stood still, staring off into the distance. "I see that you're all thawed out. Don't worry, I've been keeping her warm while you were away," he said with a smug smirk as he dissolved and floated away in the wind.


	3. Game Time? Seriously?

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

AN: A reminder from _Golden Eyes: _Riba comes from a part of the phrase _Riba-su _or_ Ribaasu_, meaning: "reverse." Therefore, _Ribaasu Hiraishin no Jutsu_ is a reverse teleportation technique that teleports object to a location instead of away from it.

...

It was awkward and alarming to see that irreproachable Sasuke had become a model student. He walked alongside Riba, soaking in her knowledge, respectfully asked questions, and requested examples for clarification. The advanced schooling had apparently made him well educated and cultured, which reflected in his voice and mannerisms.

It was beginning to grate on Kakashi. Sasuke had never once given him that kind of respect or regard. He never listened, destroyed team seven, emotionally traumatized Naruto and Sakura, and ruined Kakashi's reputation as a teacher. Clan loyalty was a poor excuse, the world didn't revolve around the Uchiha, though you sure couldn't tell from Sasuke's attitude.

It would have been nice to think that Sasuke's improved attitude was due to maturity, but he hadn't changed _that_ much. He still radiated arrogance and was possessive of anything he that believed was his. He was a head taller than Riba, and had grown to be lean, muscular, and handsome, yet somehow the pair seemed unconcerned with each other's charms, unexpected behavior considering that Kakashi had seen them panting each other's names while rolling around under course blankets in a dirty Akatsuki cell. His thoughts snapped back to reality when he saw Riba and Sasuke veer away from the river they were following, "please tell me that you guys haven't forgotten the way to Konoha."

"Tsunade isn't in Konoha right now," Riba replied.

"Why wouldn't she be?"

"Because she's on special vacation. She told me before she left."

Thinking back, Kakashi could remember Tsunade disappearing for a few days here and there when she was Hokage, but he had always assumed that she restricted her drinking and gambling to black-market dens within the village, "so where is she?"

"Rogue Territory, east of the Wind Lands."

"And you're sure of this?"

"Of course, I used to meet her there every month when I was in the Akatsuki."

"The Rogue Territory is a sleazy criminal free-for-all. They won't take kindly to four Konoha shinobi walking through. If we're going to go, we'll need a solid plan."

Riba looked at Sasuke with a smirk, "do you want to plan or play?"

He grinned, "I always prefer to play."

"Play? What do you mean play? Missions aren't games," Kakashi interrupted.

"On the contrary, they're our favorite game. Sasuke and I happen to enjoy making up our strategy as we go along. It exercises our ability to improvise, and is also quite fun."

"Fun? Missions aren't fun, they're dangerous work that needs to be taken seriously. I'm disappointed, I thought I taught you better than that," Kakahi said.

There were few things that could spark fury within Riba, but Kakashi's condescending attitude was definitely one of them. Normally her confidence overruled her anger, but this time he had contradicted her in front of her apprentice. She pointed her index finger at his face, about to unleash a stream of verbal venom, when suddenly Sasuke stepped behind Kakashi and pushed his shoulder challengingly hard.

Kakashi slowly turned, eyes wide in enraged shock.

"Don't act like you taught her anything," Sasuke sneered.

Kakashi growled words as if speaking to his worst enemy, "she was my student. Your predecessor."

"I wasn't your student. You sleep with your students from what I hear, and I'm sure I would have remembered that," Sasuke said with a dark smirk.

"I taught you _Chidori_, which I sorely regret."

"No, you showed me _Chidori_ and I copied it. Riba _taught_ me how to be an assassin, and I seriously doubt that she learned any of her extraordinary skills from you."

Sensing the impending explosion, Riba calmed herself. This was exactly what she had been trying to avoid; Sasuke and Kakashi sorting out their traumatic past by baiting each other into combat. They lived by the sword and had a tendency to revert back to it whenever they were challenged. "Okay," she said. "Sasuke and I recognize your superior rank and will follow whatever plan you deem appropriate."

She smiled politely, but Kakashi wasn't buying it. It was too late to negotiate. He knew that he was losing control of his team and was determined to regain command before this supposed "vacation-like" mission degraded even further. He shrugged off his travel pack, letting it fall to the ground with a thud.

Sasuke watched carefully, readying himself to deflect whatever attack Kakashi was preparing, but was surprised to see Kakashi kneel down and begin to dig around in his bag. After a few fruitless minutes, Kakashi turned to Genma, "you don't happen to have one of the very important elite Konoha training tools on you do you?"

Genma looked confused, "you haven't hand anything to eat or drink since yesterday, you sure you're not delusional?"

"You know what I'm talking about," Kakashi replied, waiting for him to catch on.

"Oh right! The training tool," Genma dropped his pack to the ground and dug around, smiling as he handed Kakashi a small object.

Kakashi stood, "training time! The two of you seem to think that you were denied a quality eduction, and oversight which we're going to correct right now."

"I never said that," Riba interrupted.

"As Sasuke's instructor, you're responsible for his outbursts."

"By that logic, should we hold you accountable for all of Naruto's outbursts as well?"

Genma grinned at Riba's excellent point, but stopped when Kakashi pointed a terse finger at him, "this isn't open for debate from anyone. Riba, you will go first, go stand over there."

She sauntered over to the place he pointed to, thirty feet away. He reached out and opened his hand, "do you know what this is?"

"A broken-ass bell?"

Kakashi jiggled it slightly but heard nothing, t was horribly bent and missing the ball inside. "Really Genma? You don't have anything better than this?"

"Why would I? Neither of us have taught in over a decade. You're lucky that I still have that one laying around."

"What am I supposed to do with it?" Riba asked.

Kakashi took a deep breath, "all you have to do is take it from me."

"You do realize that I could just use Hiraishin no Jutsu to teleport over and grab it, right?"

"Teleporting isn't allowed."

"I thought that all's fair in the bell test," Sasuke said, his voice dripping with contempt.

"I make the bell rules!" Kakashi snapped. "The first is that Sasuke will shut up, the second is no teleporting."

Riba nodded to Sasuke, who calmly walked out of the way and sat down under a tree at the edge of the forest. Sasuke's instant compliance when Riba issued an order was the icing on Kakashi's irritation cake.

Kakashi grinned at the brilliance of his plan. Realistically, Riba was probably one of the best shinobi in the word, but so was he, a point that Sasuke sorely needed to be reminded of. A small show of force to remind the him of who he was dealing with would be enough, and besides, Kakashi loved to spar with Riba. It would burn off some of his anger and leave him in a better mood. "You may begin at any time," he yelled.

"I don't see what students learn from this," she replied.

"...to think on their feet and work as a team, also, it's fun!" Kakashi said with a smile and eye crease, trying to lighten the mood.

"It's not actually fun..." Sasuke shouted from the sidelines.

"Don't test the bell rules!" Kakashi snapped as he pointed at Sasuke while keeping his eyes on Riba. He tided the bell onto his belt loop.

Riba stood silently, resigning herself to the fact that she couldn't talk her way out of this. Kakashi watched as her eyes morphed into her golden Sharingan. Kakashi focused, letting his chakra flow into his eye. The ability to turn it on and off at will thrilled him.

He waited for her attack, but she remained still, looking off at the river. He followed her line of sight but saw nothing. He looked over at Sasuke and saw a hint of red in his lidded eyes.

"No helping each other," Kakashi scolded. "I know that you two use Genjutsu to communicate. Thanks to Sasuke, I've already seen that trick."

Sasuke laughed, "Oh yeah, I remember that. No need to be so hostile Kakashi, I thought you would have appreciated the show."

"What show?" Riba asked.

It was the worst possible subject to bring up. Kakashi had put a great deal of effort into not killing Sasuke on sight for the time he used Genjutsu to make him watch as he pleasured Riba in the bowels of the Akatsuki headquarters.

The second that he turned to glare at Sasuke, Riba dashed forward. Kakashi hastily preformed the seals for Chidori and drew back his hand. It may have been overkill, but nothing less would even dent her, just make her mad. He reached out, aiming for her chest, but she dodged at lightning speed and passed right by him.

Kakashi watched out of the corner of his eye as she grabbed his travel pack. She was too fast for him to catch, and before he could even register what was happening, she had picked up the bag and thrown it against a tree near where Sasuke was sitting. In that instant, Sasuke lunged at a very stunned Genma and grabbed his pack, seconds before Genma could shoot the senbon he had aimed at Sasuke's elegant left eye.

Sasuke walked back over to the tree, dropped Genma's pack next to Kakashi's, and sat down nonchalantly as if nothing had happened. Similarly, Riba walked back to her original position and calmly sat on the sandy river bank, visibly relaxed.

"I said bell, not bag," Kakashi claified.

"I know," Riba responded cheerfully.

"Then why does Sasuke have all of our stuff?"

"He wanted to help out by holding it for you."

"Why does Sasuke _really_ have our stuff?"

"Because it contains your food and water. It takes what? Three days? For a person to die of dehydration. I'll just wait until you're too weak to fight and then take the bell."

"You do realize that we're right next to a river."

"Who's cool, clear, deliciousness will tempt you into surrendering even faster. If either you or Genma attempt to go near it, I will attack you with my full five-tailed fury."

"Cold, calculating, and subversive. How very Uchiha of you."

"I wonder why that is..." Riba mocked.

Sasuku let out a single laugh as Kakashi sat down and began to plan.

...

Hours had passed and Riba hadn't relented an inch. She reminded Kakashi of Sakura, strong and persistent. Every time he moved, even slightly, she would emerge from her mind-numbingly blank stare and scrutinize him. Her pesky Hyuuga half was obviously letting her monitor his chakra. Apparently, that part of her wasn't as weak she lead everyone to believe.

He knew what she was trying to accomplish; getting everyone to sit still and calm down. It wasn't the way he had planned to handle it, but he wasn't complaining. She had effectively defused the situation, thus he resigned himself to sitting lazily on the sandy shore with his feet outstretched, waiting for her to make her move.

"Sasuke, I'm rather thirsty. Could you please toss me Kakashi's canteen?" she asked.

Sasuke sat up, roused from the nap he had apparently been taking. To Kakashi's dismay, Sasuke began to unceremoniously dump out the content of his bag onto the ground. He grabbled the canteen and shook it, "he's out of water."

"That's fine, I'll just take Genma's."

"Wait!" Genma shouted as he watched Sasuke dump out the contents of his pack as well, "I don't want to be a part of this."

Riba grinned, "too late, you're included by association. Besides, it looks like Kakashi could use the help."

"Included in what? Two Uchiha and a genius all competing with each other for the title of biggest asshole? This could be the sequel to _Golden Eyes,_ you could call it _More Drama: Impending Mortality Edition_."

Riba laughed as Sasuke tossed her Genma's canteen. She pulled off the cap and took a swig, her every movement followed closely by Kakashi's thirsty gaze.

She coughed violently, "what the hell is this? Vodka!?"

"It's not entirely Vodka," Genma clarified.

"Did you seriously bring alcohol on our mission?" Kakashi asked disappointedly.

"Yes I did. I need a strong drink to put up with you."

"It's good though," Riba said, cutting him off.

"Why thank you, I invented that mix myself."

"Are you going to let me have some?" Sasuke asked. He held out his hand and Riba tossed him the canteen.

"No more drinking while on mission!" Kakashi commanded, and Sasuke promptly ignored.

"Is that _Icha Icha_?" Sasuke said as he sifted through the pile of Kakashi and Genma's stuff. "They still make these?"

"Hmm, let me see that," Riba said. Kakashi watched in horror as Sasuke tossed her the book as if it was a piece of trash headed for the bin. It landed in the sand in front of her and she shook the debris out of its pages as she picked it up.

For the next hour, she sat quietly with the book on her lap. Kakashi marveled at how unaffected she was, as if she was reading a medical textbook. He expected at least some level of shock at the fact that it blatantly referenced their relationship, but she actually seemed pretty unimpressed.

"I can't believe that you wrote this," she said passingly as she glared at Kakashi.

"I didn't, I wrote _Golden Eyes_. A fan wrote that."

"It's not even close to accurate."

"It's meant to be a fiction."

"Well, it's a poor one. Ria does nothing but chase Kachi and come up with ridiculous schemes to get into a relationship with him. Doesn't she have a life?"

"It says that she's a shinobi, doesn't it?" Kakashi said defensively.

"No self respecting kunoichi would ever devote that much of her life to man chasing. Most of us have far more pressing responsibilities."

Sasuke snickered, "obviously, you don't know Sakura."

"Sakura has found other entertainment since you left. She has gone undercover as a geisha with me more than once," Riba corrected as she flipped ahead to the last page to satisfy her curiosity about the ending.

"You and your friends were geisha? I'm sorry I missed that," Sasuke said as he waved to Gemna, who threw him the canteen.

Kakashi grimaced, apparently the pair had been passing around whatever concoction Genma had brought. That was just what he needed, a drunken team. He shook his head, the only redeeming outcome was that Sasuke and Genma were interacting, possibly even bonding.

"You look like you could use a drink," Sasuke said jokingly. With a flick of his wrist he tossed Kakashi the canteen. Kakashi snatched it from the air and slowly looked down at the container, obviously Gemna had enough foresight to bring the big bottle. Kakashi didn't usually believed in drinking while on missions, but considering that the mission was both useless and already in shambles, he decided to make an exception. He pulled off the cap and downed the remaining liquor. There was more left then he had anticipated, but every swallow decreased the ability of everyone else to get even more drunk than they already were. It was deliciously sweet, but absurdly strong. He could feel it burning a path down his throat and knew all to well what it would do to his stability once it had a chance to diffuse into his system.

He tossed the container aside and looked up. Riba was gone.

"Damn it! I told you guys not to help her," he said. She had disappeared without a trace, leaving only his _Icha Icha_ book sitting peacefully in the sand. It was an obvious trap, but he was in no mood to search the forest for her, so he activated his Sharingan and carefully walk over. He nudged the book ever so slightly with his foot. When nothing happened, he quickly snatched it up and stuffed the precious volume into his hip pack.

He felt a tiny tug on his belt and looked down to see Riba sitting directly in front of him, holding the bell.

"I hope you didn't just teleport," he said in an accusatory tone.

"Not at all. I used a camouflage Jutsu to become invisible. I was sitting here the whole time."

"Cute trick," he said as he helped her to her feet. "I'm sorry that I didn't copy it."

"It only works as long as you stay perfectly still, even the slightest movement will create distortions that make it look like the background is fluttering. I've yet to find a way around that."

"Still, that was impressive."

"Okay," she said as she attached the bell to the strap on her ANBU vest, "come and get it."

Kakashi silently outstretched his hand.

"You don't try to get it back from your students?" She asked.

"Um no, we usually end the lesson and get lunch."

"Oh."

"Do you want me to come get it?" He teased

"Well yes, I assumed that's how this worked."

Kakashi dropped his hand lazily to his side and Riba activated her Mangekyou Sharingan. Almost instantly she heard Kakashi fall from a tree behind her and hit the ground with a loud thud. The shadow clone in front of her vanished in a puff of smoke.

Genma laughed, "holy shit! When did he create a shadow clone? I didn't even see him preform the seals."

Riba paused, "I have no idea. I was watching him the whole time."

Sasuke looked at Kakashi's body, crouched upside down against the base of a tree, "did you finally kill him?"

"Of course not. I injected him with some of my chakra when I grabbed the bell and used it to create a Genjutsu in his mind that convinced his body that it's paralyzed."

Genma sighed, "you guys can cast Genjutsu without looking someone in the eye? When the hell did that happen?"

"Itachi taught me, and I taught Sasuke."

"You are going to release him right?" Genma asked as he eyed Kakashi.

She waved her hand dismissively, "Isn't he supposed to be a genius? I'm sure he's smart enough to convince his body to cooperate. In the mean time, we should pack up his stuff and get ready to leave."

...

Kakashi shook his arms loosely as he walked, trying to regain feeling. The rest period had starved off the tension in the group, though the fact that everyone was heavily intoxicated was probably also a factor. Genma and Sasuke had walked ahead, and though they didn't talk much at least they weren't ignoring each other.

Riba walked beside Kakashi, periodically glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. At first he had figured that she was monitoring his recovery, but after a while he realized that her drawn out stares held fragments of longing. It dawned on him that she hadn't seen him awake in three years. He grinned proudly, he had always known that he was attractive and took secret pleasure in drinking in the surprised looks on women's faces when he slowly undressed in front of them, so he knew all to well what she was imagining.

Both of them were hardened leaders who were not prone to romantic gestures, but the alcohol was affecting his inhibitions, and he was starting to wonder if maybe it was time to try being affectionate. He rapidly cycled through his memories, trying to recall what women liked to hear. Anything from Genma or _Icha Icha_ were obviously disastrous choices, giving Kakashi little to go on. His father had been a surprisingly loving man, and Kakashi strained to remember what he used to say to his mother. He was so young when they had passed away, that this memories were hazy at best.

"You know, the Rouge Territory isn't going to welcome us," he mentioned, trying to start up a conversation and hoping that something sexy would suddenly spill out of his mouth.

"Since Sasuke and I are both former Akatsuki, we should't have a problem. As for you and Genma, you might be surprised how little criminals care for fighting when they see no profit in it."

"_Honey_, I think that we should at least have a plan," he said in a low, velvety smooth, voice.

Everyone froze as if they had heard a needle scratch across a record and the music stop.

Sasuke smirked like he was watching Kakashi stand on a sinking ship. Genma just laughed, "okay, you've had enough, we're cutting you off. No more drinking on missions."

Riba's eyes were wide with shock. His tone had been devastatingly sexy, yet awkward. It was so out of character for him that it had caught her completely off guard. Obviously, he was more intoxicated than she has originally thought, but the sentiment was still there, "okay, how about this..." Riba kneeled on the ground and preformed her one-handed seals for _Ribaasu Hiraishin no Jutsu. _

A long box materialized on the ground, the elegant looking wooden lid was inscribed with the seal she used to teleport objects to her. She slid the lid back, reveling stacks of money from various countries, neatly arranged in individual compartments, "...does anyone remember what currency they use in the Rogue Territory?"

"Booze and hookers?" Genma slurred.

"Correct, but I could't fit them in the box so we'll just have to buy some with this mound of cash." She pulled out a large stack and split it among everyone, "you can buy your way out of almost anything when it comes to criminals." She slid the lid back, and with a series of hand seals, teleported it away.

Kakashi nodded as he flipped through the large sum, "this is a bit better, but still not equivalent to a plan."

"Consider it a compromise. Now don't go spending all your booze and hookers in one place," she said as she stuffed her stack into her tight ANBU vest.

Kakashi was quite pleased with himself. Showing a little affection had felt pretty good, and Riba seemed to enjoy it. As a bonus, it made her more responsive to his requests.

Genma winked at Kakashi and gestured towards the path ahead of them, "lead the way sugar dumplings."


	4. Who are We Again?

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

_The Beach was quiet, only the seductive crashing of _

_the waves on the sand could be heard._

_Ria slowly untied her blouse as she straddled Kachi,_

_ "oh Kachi, I could never look at another man! Take me..."_

"Time to put down the porn, it's about to get ugly around...Wow! Is every page in color?!" Genma said as he leaned over Kakashi shoulder. "Man, I've done that one a few times, I could tell you some stories," he pointed at a particularly graphic panel, and Kakashi snapped the book shut on his finger.

The first city inside of the Rogue Territory looked like a hastily constructed mining town. The single street was lined with worn wooden buildings, no more than two stories high. Dust covered every surface, and whipped up into their faces as their footfall disturbed the loosely packed road. Various rough looking men and women nodded greetings to Sasuke and Riba, recognizing them from their shady pasts. Genma and Kakashi were looked upon with suspicion, though as Riba had predicted, no one bother to start a confrontation.

"You hold one of the highest positions in the wealthiest country on the planet, and this is where you vacation?" Kakashi asked rhetorically.

"The inn is at the end of the street, why don't we get a room for the evening. It will take at least that long for us to get into the gambling house and find Tsunade," Riba replied.

Kakashi looked over the dilapidated building, "I suppose that it's better than spending the night laying in the sand. Do you know where we could get some food?"

"There's a store across the street."

"Then please get us some food of your choice while we will secure a room."

Riba nodded and dissolved as Kakashi, Genma, and Sasuke walked over to the inn. The establishment was seedy, decaying wood on the outside and outdated, smoke stained, flower wallpaper on the inside. A tired looking middle-aged man slumped over the desk, possibly fighting a hangover.

Sasuke strode past Kakashi and Genma and firmly leaned his elbow inches from the man's swollen face. He shot up and stared blankly at Sasuke, "what can I do for you?"

"I would like the best room in the house for my lover and I. Oh, and a room for my friend and his boyfriend..."

Kakashi instantly regretted letting himself be convinced to enter the Rogue Territory without a plan, and was quickly learning to hate Riba and Sasuke's version of "playing." Sasuke handed the man a stack of cash without bothering to count it, and grabbed the keys that were handed to him. He threw one over his shoulder to Genma as he started up the stairs, "and send up a bottle of your finest champagne, I want my lover to be treated extravagantly."

Genma sucked on his senbon, "so, he's delusional. Should we wait for Riba?"

"I suppose so," Kakashi sighed.

They stood in the street and looked around until they saw Riba walking out of a store carrying a large paper bag. An old woman walked over to the entrance and waved, "goodbye dear, I hope that your brother and his friends have a good time and win big!"

Though his expression was lazy, internally Kakashi was excruciatingly focused. _Brother?_ Was that what she was calling Sasuke? This was the exact reason why strategizing was so important. Now there were conflicting stories floating around town, and it was only a matter of time before someone caught on.

Riba waved politely and smiled at the woman as she handed Genma the bag. He rummaged through a bit, "are those rice balls wrapped in silk? There's no way that you got this from that shabby store."

She smiled, "it might surprise you. Anyway, do we have a room?"

"Two actually. One for you and Sasuke, and another for Genma and I," Kakashi said as he looked at the small store across the street. It appeared so plain and run down that he wondered if Riba had secretly teleported to Uindo to get their groceries.

"Why two rooms?" She asked.

"So my boyfriend and I can have some alone time," Genma deadpanned.

"How lovely for you two," she said absently. "In the bottom of the bag are two plain black shirts and pants. I suggest that you put them on and attempt to look presentable. It would probably be a good idea for us to wait until dark to head to the gambling dens, people around here prefer the night, and it will give us a larger crowd to blend into."

"Or increase the chance that we're recognized and singled out," Kakashi replied.

"Don't be ridiculous, everyone already knows who you are. Believe me, they knew you were here the minute you stepped foot in the territory."

"As much as I might disagree with you methods, you do know this place better than we do. Just be aware that I will put a stop to the fun and games the second I detect even the slightest hint of danger," Kakashi insisted.

"I would expect no less from my commander."

"Alright, we'll meet you in the lobby at sunset and head for the gambling den. Do you and Sasuke have something to wear?"

She held up her hand, gesturing as if she was about to preform a seal, "oh, I'm sure that I can get us something from our reserves."

They walked back into the inn and ascended the stairs. Kakashi and Genma entered the first door on the right while Riba continued down the hall. The old style key clanged inside the lock as Kakashi wiggled it around. Eventually, the lock engaged and the door creaked open.

The pair walked into the most luxurious room either of them had ever seen. They took off their shoes and stepped onto the velvety carpet. The room was a sea of blue and violet, with draping around a mahogany bed and marble counter tops that made the room look regal. A large oil painting of a flower-like object hung above the headboard.

Kakashi took the bag and sat it on the end table. He pulled out two rice balls and threw one to Genma, "this is...unexpected."

"It makes sense though, criminals need to hide their wealth from other criminals. They probably don't want to advertise."

"One of these shirts is a button up with a low collar, and the other is a slip on with a high collar, which do you want?"

"I'll take the low collar, looks less elegant. I always associate the high collar look with pretty boys. Speaking of pretty boys..."

Kakashi tossed Genma the shirt and pants, "I don't want to talk about it."

"You aren't, you know, a little mad?"

"Mad at what?" Kakashi said more firmly than he intended.

"That Riba is down the hall with Sasuke."

"I'm sure that they've been alone together many times before."

"Exactly, and your okay with that?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

Gemna slid his senbon to the other side of his mouth, his version of bored fidgeting, "because you and Riba have a history."

Kakashi sighed, "you notice that her men are always Uchiha or Hyuuga. She's responsible for the welfare of her clans. I trust that she's giving Sasuke whatever attention he needs."

"They seem extremely close."

"I'm sure they are, but she's not responsible for me like she is for him. We have a different kind of love."

"So you aren't upset?"

"Of course I'm upset!" Kakashi said tersely, "but I'm not about to start making demands. In all the years I've known her, she has never once questioned my bachelor lifestyle, not once. Not even when I've been aloof, introverted, and slept with every sexy woman in Konoha. Given all that I've put her through, I can't just tell her to stop doing what she needs to do."

Genma sighed, "The whole accept her for who she is argument would be fine if she was leaving dirty socks on the floor, but that's not what's happening. She plays dirty with bad boys. Sasuke is a criminal, Itachi was a world class criminal, Neji became a criminal with her help, and those are only the ones we know about."

"That's because she values people over laws. It would be hypocritical of me to judge her for that."

"Yes, but accepting her now requires that you accept Sasuke, who is violent, unpredictable, and hates you."

"Which is why I'm going to have a talk with him."

"A talk? Oh yeah, because Sasuke always listens..."

"Just put on your fancy cloths and lets get this horror show of a mission over with."

...

Genma traced small circles in the dirt with his shoe as Kakashi stared blankly into the distance. The evening street was filled with exceptionally well dressed men with scantily clad women on their arms, standing in stark contrast to the shabby facade of the surroundings.

Every once and a while an exquisitely dressed woman would walk by with an handsome man or two trailing close behind. Wealthy women totting expensive lovers. Kakashi snickered, wondering if that was the look that Riba and Sasuke would go for. Realistically, one of them had to play the well off person and the other the arm candy. They both had alpha personalities, but Sasuke was her apprentice and there was no way that Riba would ever agree to play a bimbo. Kakashi secretly looked forward to seeing Sasuke be forced to act like a man whore.

Genma winced and Kakashi turned to see what was wrong. Almost instantly he felt the hard impact of a fist hitting his left eye. Through the shock, he could see the blurry form of a man in front of him. He instinctually reached up and grabbed the man's throat, collapsing his windpipe. The man fell to the ground and began to gasp audibly, it wouldn't be long before he suffocated.

Genma was on the ground holding his gut and looking up at the roofs. Kakashi followed his line of sight to the mass of shinobi covering the cheap shingles of every building on the street. They were not the flimsy hired thugs he had hoped for, but appeared to be renegade Jounin from an assortment of villages. He recognized many of them, which meant that they had probably recognized he and Genma as well.

His eye was swelling, preventing him from activating his Sharingan. He cursed inwardly, they were hilariously outnumbered with no strategy or intel, and Riba the "master planner" was nowhere to be found.

Two burly men with unmarked hitae-ate roughly dragged them towards a storage shed. They didn't speak, except to growl "in" as they pushed Kakashi and Genma through the door and ushered them down a flight of wooden stairs.

Unsurprisingly, the basement of the small building was fifty times its size. The decor was a tacky combination of gold and silver plate laced with dark colored suede, making the tables, walls, and bar, irritatingly shiny. The room was packed, but no one seemed surprised to see them. Waitresses in gold trimmed suits gracefully stepped out of their way, as if two shinobi being dragged across the plush black carpeting was an everyday occurrence, which it probably was.

They were thrown onto an empty room in the back of the club and locked in by a thick metal door. The stone floor and peeling paint were emphasized by the harsh light of a single uncovered bulb hanging from the celling.

"They got dirt on my collar," Genma said as he brushed the fabric with the back of his hand.

"We should've had a plan," Kakashi lamented.

"A plan? As if we could have known that this town just happens to be where the world's rejected shinobi hang out en-mass. What, pray tell, would have been the plan?"

"To recon this place, figure out ahead of time that we were outnumbered and return to Konoha to wait for Tsunade to return."

"That's easy to say in hindsight..."

"Shhhh, I think Riba is trying to talk to me."

"Is that supposed to be a metaphor or something?"

"No," Kakashi cut him off. "Once she gets her chakra inside of your body, she can use it to trap you in her Genjutsu, even over great distances. Her and Sasuke use it to communicate."

"Oh god, that's...frightening."

"You have no idea." Kakashi stood against the wall and closed his eyes, "Riba must have injected some of her chakra into my body when she grabbed the bell off my hip. I can feel it moving up my spine like a cold chill."

"That's kind of sexy, does it feel sexy?" Genma purred.

"Just shut up and guard my body," the world was beginning to melt around him, and in seconds he saw the familiar flower covered clearing from the Genjutsu he had rendered for her in their youth. She had made few alterations to the originally static environment, wind blew the small white flowers and leaves in sync, and ravens flew listlessly through the sky, their calls echoing off the vertical walls of the endless abyss. He marveled at how realistic the Genjutsu was, a vast improvement over what he had initially given her to work with.

Riba stood still in front of him with her hip cocked and a blood red dress unusually tight against her body, the thick fabric of which looked more like a long corset than a dress. He traced her curves with a slow upwards glance, she was obviously dressed to kill, though not to sit, walk, or breath. It fit almost too well, drawing attention the the length of her legs and the curve of her thin waist. The cut of the top was low enough for him to see the valley between her breasts and their curvature as she breathed. Her hair was pulled to the side and held with a bird shaped hairpin, looking rather elegant.

Suddenly, the mission didn't seem so important. He wondered why he had been rushing in the first place, though the fact that Riba looked as if she had just stepped out of _Icha Icha Paradise _might have been distorting his judgment. "I like your dress, you look..." _devastating? erotic? expensive? _"nice," he said smugly.

"Thank you, it served me well back in the Akatsuki."

"That explains everything..."

"Where are you? Sasuke and I have been looking for you guys since sun set."

"I thought you wanted to play? Why don't you come find me?" He teased.

"Kakashi, where are you?"

"Oh, so now you want to plan..."

"Where!?" She snapped.

"In a closet in the back of a tacky, gold and silver lined, gambling den."

"Okay, Sasuke and I are on our way."

"There's no need to get blood on your blood colored dress. I'm sure that Genma and I can handle fighting our way out now that we're away from the missing-nin mob. By the way, you and Sasuke might want to get your hunter-nin vests on and clean up the town, you could make a fortune."

"Oh Kakashi, what would I do without your humor?" She said as she promptly cut off the Genjutsu, leaving him dazed.

He saw Genma pop into his field of vision. "So, what did she say? Is she coming?" He asked

"Honestly, she isn't dressed for combat. We're on our own. You want to get the first one or shall I?"

"You always get the first kill. I'm taking this one."

Kakashi walked over to the door, "ready?"

"Just do it."

Kakashi pounded on the heavy door as Genma dashed over and stood against wall beside side it. A second later the door opened and Genma shot a senbon from his mouth, hoping to hit whoever happened to be foolish enough to step through first.

Riba snatched the senbon from the air, inches from her throat, and slipped it into her hair next to her carefully positioned hairpin as she strode into the room. Sasuke came in behind her, followed by the two burly Jounin. As Kakashi had predicted, Sasuke's cover was that of Riba's plaything. His stylish blue shirt and black pants made Kakashi and Genma's clothing look cheap by comparison.

The larger of the Jounin stood menacingly in the center of the room while his smaller counterpart closed the door and leaned back against it, preventing escape. Neither man fit well inside their vests. Their muscles bulged uncomfortably inside the fabric, making them look like bulldogs stuffed inside of tube socks. Their brown hair and rough appearances were similar enough to suggest that they were related.

"Alright," the larger man's voice resounded. "All four of you have made appearances in various village's bingo books. Some of you more than others." He eyed Riba and Sasuke, "I remember seeing you two walking around in Akatsuki robes before the war, so I was going to leave you alone, until I saw you with the Copy-ninja and the Gigolo."

Genma's face lit up, "Gigolo? Is that what they call me in other villages? Because that would be amazing!"

"Shut up!" The man shouted. "Lets start with you," he said as he pointed at Riba. "Who are you?"

"I'm Riba of the Akatsuki, and this is my brother Sasuke, also of the Akatsuki." She held out her left hand, flashing her ring as proof.

"That's interesting, because I have an innkeeper who told me that this man was your lover. I think you'll find that lies put me in a violent mood, despite how sorry I would be to destroy such a spectacular body."

Kakashi hated himself for going against his own judgement and letting Riba be cavalier with a mission that he should have had full control over. Of course the town had a network of spies constantly feeding them information, why wouldn't they? Now her little game was about to result in a large brawl.

"You," the man pointed at Sasuke. "Is this woman your sister?"

"Yes."

"Then why did you tell the innkeeper that she was your lover?"

"Because she is."

"You had...wait, what?"

"You heard me," he said unapologetically.

The man's brow furrowed as his glare shifted between Riba and Sasuke, "don't bullshit me! You two look nothing alike."

"I don't know Matsu," the other man said. "He's hiding something. For one, his head is coved in chakra."

Matsu looked at Sasuke suspiciously, "whatever your doing, you had better stop right now or I will stop you!"

Sasuke nodded, and slowly his hair began to change. Red streaks began to appear, giving it an auburn tint. His eyes lighted from dark gray to gold, as if Riba's dark chakra had infiltrated his body.

Kakashi and Genma were stunned silent. You could always tell that Riba and Sasuke were from the same clan, as they shared many of the traditional Uchiha features, but once Sasuke's hair and eyes matched Riba's, no one would have doubted the lie that they were trying to pass off.

Sasuke put his arm around Riba, resting his hand on her hip and giving it a visible squeeze.

"Oh god. You guys are disgusting," Matsu spat out.

"How _dare_ you talk to us like that," Riba retorted viciously. "Did it ever occur to you that we came to the Rogue Territory to escape such prejudice? That we've been shammed and persecuted all our lives? All we're looking for is a few days where we can be together openly, unlike in our tyrannical village. You appear to have been Jounin once, and if you're here then you've probably been mistreated by your village as well. Who are you to judge us?"

The man was silent for a long time, and Kakashi was sure that he had seen a single tear streak down the man's cheek and be brushed away by his thick hand. "I understand, " he whimpered. "I was mercilessly bullied for sleeping with my cousin all those times. What are these other two guys here for?"

Riba paused, letting Sasuke quickly pick up where she left off, "Kakashi and his boyfriend have been subject to much of the same ridicule that we have. We invited them along so they could also get a reprieve."

"Sorry that he killed your man," Riba added.

"It's alright, he was an asshole."

"Yeah, fuck that guy," she said unrepentantly. The sudden use of such harsh language coming from such a refined looking women caught the men off guard and made them laugh hardily, completely diffusing the tension.

Riba smiled, "actually, I would like to see my old friend if she's around. Do you know Tsunade? Her and I used to come here years ago."

"Oh, yeah yeah, I know her. She's in the high roller room, but I can ask her to meet you in the V.I.P lounge if you would like."

"That would be lovely."

"Your brother and friends can wait at the bar. If Tsunade approves, well bring them back as well."

They were shuffled out of the room and into the club. Kakashi wasn't sure whether he was impressed by Riba and Sasuke's ingenuity, or angry that they were using it as entertainment. Riba was escorted to the V.I.P lounge while Sasuke made his own way to the least crowded looking seat available, and reached over the bar like he owned the place. He poured himself a shot of an exotically unidentifiable liquor, and looked quietly at nothing in particular as he drank it.

Genma and Kakashi sat down on either side of him. There was an ice box within arms reach and Kakashi didn't hesitate to grab a few cubes to hold against his eye, "that was an impressive Jutsu you used to change your appearance. You didn't even need to use hand seals."

"Standard issue Jutsu taught to all Shadow Assassins at the Academy," Sasuke said dryly, not bothering to look at them.

"Ah yes, the Uindo Academy. Amazing how Riba was able to use her influence to get you accepted, though not as amazing as whatever she said to make you abandon your revenge against Konoha. She is very well spoken."

"She's not well spoken, she's perfectly spoken," he corrected. "Her immortal chakra and swordsmanship give her strength, but it's her words that give her power."

"You didn't answer my question."

Sasuke set his glass down and rested his elbows on the bar, "why are you here wasting my time? Riba and I could have easily found Tsunade, and you could have returned to Konoha to do whatever it is that you do."

"Frankly, I'm a part of her life and won't be going away, so you and I need to learn to be civil," Kakashi said calmly.

"Won't be going away?" He reiterated smugly. "I doubt that. I'm sure that you could be made to go away."

"Perhaps, or perhaps I'll see about becoming her Royal Guard, making my presence even more permanent."

"She already has one, and I don't think Neji has any intention of resigning."

"Neji was temporary. If he was still her guard, then he would be at her side."

"Oh Copy-ninja, how naively uninformed you are. For the first time in history a Sovereign has appointed her guard to reign while she travels. He has come to be known as her voice amongst the High Council."

"Which means what to me?"

"That they respect Neji as much as they do the apprentice that watches over her while he governs." He poured himself another glass, "which means that there is no place for you in her life."

Kakashi was almost impressed. Sasuke had diverted the conversation away from his vendetta against Konoha, to Kakashi's relationship with Riba, a rather smooth tactic. "I expect my question to be answered. How did she convince you not to destroy Konoha?"

"You want to know how she talked me off the path of vengeance?" He said with calm arrogance. "She said that she would help me destroy Konoha. Burn it to the ground with the black fire of a thousand dragons."

"I can't believe that," Kakashi said.

"Obviously, you don't know her as well as you pretend."

"But Konoha wasn't destroyed, so something else happened."

"I fought Naruto and he killed me. Riba and I had a deal which she honored by resurrecting me. I awoke in a cell deep within Uindo peak, and demanded to be let go. She agreed to help me, on the condition that I would tell her what I would do after Konoha was gone."

"What did you tell her?"

"I hadn't really thought about it until that moment. I believe I said something about being at peace. She asked what I would do after the feeling passed and became nothing more than a memory." He finished his drink and set the glass down on the shimmering surface of the bar, "she left me in that cell for months, but brought books and linens and purposely spoke of nothing worth mentioning."

"And that's it? That's all it took?"

"Eventually I realized that once Konoha was gone, there would be nothing left for me. I asked what she would do in my position, and she told me to start treating Konoha like a prostitute."

"I completely agree..." Genma quipped.

"Excuse me if I fail to see the connection," Kakashi interjected.

"Valuable when used correctly, worthless to everyone if killed. And I wouldn't want to spoil Uindo's fun."

"Valuable? What would Uindo need with Konoha? They're wealthy and powerful enough to be completely independent."

"Konoha is a loyal customer. Uindo is in the business of assassinations, and currently business is good."

"We have our own assassins. Why would the government bother to hire outside the city?"

"Tell me, if Konoha wants to kill a Konoha lord, who would they send? Remember Itachi? That's what happens when you don't outsource your massacres."

Kakashi's chest began to tighten. Was Sasuke trying to turn him against Riba? Was he lying? Kakashi wondered if maybe he was being baited with truth. On the surface it made sense, assassins needed targets. If a village needed to kill one of their own, they would need it to be executed perfectly, and would probably pay a very high price for perfection. Uindo was so isolated that an assassin would never be caught once he crossed back into the Dark Wind Country.

Sasuke seemed amused as he watched Kakashi silently puzzle over the information, "never bothered to ask who she kills did you? I wonder how many deaths you attribute to missions that Uindo is actually responsible for? How many of your friends?"

"Stop," Kakashi ordered. "You're not going to talk me out of loving her. I have been at it too long to be broken by you."

"Love?" He snickered. "You think that matters to me? Her and I have more than love, we are bound by blood."

"She owes you her love and protection because you happen to be Uchiha. I get her love without obligation, something you will never have," Kakashi said coldly.

"Your love is fleeting, eventually you will die. She is an immortal beast, and I will be resurrected over and over, and maybe even become immortal myself. You're temporary, so go ahead and love her, I can wait."

The unmarked Jounin were heading over, and Sasuke grinned as he left the bar to go meet them.

"Good talk Sasuke!" Genma shouted. He rested a hand on Kakashi's shoulder, "you were right, talking to him has obviously fixed everything."

...

Kakashi wanted to slug him. Slap the wealthy, privileged, arrogant, brat so hard that it would take a resurrection just for him to regain conciseness. He stared at the tuft of angled hair on the back of Sasuke's head and fantasized about using it to pull him backwards onto the ground where he could repeatedly punching him in the throat. Three years in Uindo and he was acting like he was the king of the damn mountain.

They were lead into a surprisingly well furnished room, the navy blue and beige decor of which was far less tacky than the club outside. It had a private bar and a round table surrounded by comfortable looking chairs, two of which Riba and Tsunade lounged in. There was a pile of empty glasses sitting in the center that appeared to be the makings of a shot glass pyramid, a large one.

"Oh your good," Tsunade slurred, "but not that good. I can still kick your tight little ass all over this village!"

"You haven't been able to kick my ass since I was twenty years old, and that was only because it was my birthday and I was smashed," Riba snickered.

"All you have is speed. I can outmatch that."

Riba held up her left arm and a series of btattooed bands appeared around her wrist, each with intricately incorporated Uindo lettering. She pointed to each one in turn as sh flexed her fingers playfully, "master Shadow Assassin, master swordsman, master of Taijutsu, master of Genjutsu..."

"Does Uindo offer a mastery of arrogance?"

"I earned the arrogance, as well as the speed."

"Speed isn't everything."

"Unfortunate, as I'm five times faster drunk than you are sober."

Tsunade waved a particularly crude hand gesture and they both laughed hardily.

Sasuke sat down in the chair beside Riba, "I could take you both."

"Not in combat," Tsunade huffed.

"Oh, were we talking about combat?" Sasuke said, feigning innocence.

Genma sat down on Riba's other side, "you look delicious tonight. You're technically single aren't you?" He slyly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her just close enough to snatch his senbon out of her hair with his curled tongue. He leaned back with a triumphant grin, and Riba giggled intoxicatedly as he winked at her. She noticed that Kakashi had sat down next to him and, without a word, she reached over at brushed her hand along side his face. He flinched at the sudden contact, and more so once he felt a cold burn underneath his skin. Before he could protest, the swelling around his eye had disappeared.

"Fast and accurate," Tsunade said. "I didn't know that you could heal."

"Only small injuries, and not without a certain degree of pain. My chakra is hypothermically cold from what I hear."

Kakashi rubbed his face, "next time can I have Tsunade do it?"

"Speaking of healing, I have something you may be interested in," Riba nodded at Sasuke who pulled a bottle out of his pocket and handed it to Tsunade.

"What is this?" Tsunade ask as she shook the bottle and watched its contents slosh around.

"An odorless, tasteless, clear liquid," Riba said

"So, water then? I'll really need that tomorrow to nurse my hangover."

"I think its a poison of some sort, my chakra rejected it when I drank it."

Tsunade's eyes snapped from the bottle to Riba, "exactly how long did that take?"

"A half hour or so. My body usually doesn't take that long to recognize a toxin."

Tsunade eyes widened and she appeared to be rapidly sobering up, "why are you all here? Where did you get this?"

"Kakashi and Genma's mission happened to take them by where Sasuke and I were looting...I mean _loitering_ around one of Orochimaru's old bases."

She hummed joyously as her fingers wrapped tightly around the bottle, "please continue to loiter whenever you want. This is perfect."

"Thank you, we shall loiter like pirates now that we have your permission. Sasuke, will you please show her the rest?"

Sasuke handed her the leather bag containing the Akatsuki ring, "they're real."

"You sure?"

"There are nine in the bag. The tenth is missing because I still have mine," Riba said. "A forger wouldn't have known that."

"So Madara was there at some point then?"

"That's what we think. The bag was tossed aside, so I assume he was in a hurry. He neglected to take whatever is in that bottle, so he either didn't notice it, didn't want it, or didn't know what it was."

Tsunade stood rapidly, banging her knees on the table, "I need to go." She quickly grabbed a pen from the bar and scribbled a note onto a partially soaked napkin, "you are all on a mission starting the day after tomorrow. Here is your mission briefing, and you are to tell no one about this under any circumstances."

Genma spun around in his chair, "but you already sent Kakashi and I on a mission to test the chakra blocking drug."

"Fuck your mission, you're on a new one! No one is to leave this city for two days," she said as she ran across the room an drunkenly stumbled out the door.

Genma sighed, "god damn it Kakashi, I told you that mission was bullshit."


	5. Mysterious Mystery is Mysterious

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

"Seriously, you guys have to talk to each other. Its been two days."

"Genma, leave them alone. This may be the most peaceful mission I've ever been on," Riba said pleasantly.

"I'm pretty sure that we can't do this without communication."

Riba sighed, "Kakashi, Sasuke, could you please try to interact? You can go back to blind hatred the minute that the mission is over."

"There's nothing blind about my hatred," Sasuke said defiantly.

"Kakashi, I lack that authority to order you to do anything, so I'm respectfully requesting that you speak to Sasuke. Sasuke, as your Sovereign and mentor, I order you to answer Kakashi whenever he addresses you."

They nodded, but remained silent.

"It's time to captain'up Kakashi, I don't plan to stand in this dirty street all day," Riba mocked.

"Give me our orders."

She pulled the liquor stained napkin out of her ANBU vest and threw it to him.

"That's it?"

"That's all she gave us."

He looked down at the hastily scribbled note:

_0, 50_

"Is that an _s_ or a five?" Genma asked as he looked over Kakashi shoulder.

"Zero, five zero," he claified.

"Which means what exactly?"

"That we're being asked to do something so classified that Tsunade was afraid to even write it out," Riba said as she played with the hilt of her infamous sword.

Genma sucked on his senbon, "a measurement perhaps? Start at point zero and move fifty..."

"Fifity what?" Riba interrupted. "Paces, feet, miles? In what direction? Tsunade's too smart to give us vague directions about something that's obviously very important. It must have an exact meaning."

"Latitude and longitude?" Sasuke suggested. "Where is zero fifty on a world map?"

"In the middle of the ocean," Kakashi replied. "Compass directions perhaps. Zero is due north and fifty is northeast."

Genma shrugged, "yeah, but how far north? When do we turn northeast? Riba's right, the meaning has to be precise and something that we would recognize."

"What if it's written in two parts?" Riba said. "The first part is a direction and the second is just a number."

"Which means what?" Kakashi asked.

"Zero is north, and fifty is just fifty. North fifty, or _Northern Fifty_." She pointed to her old Northern Fifty tattoo, "the Reject Cage."

Kakashi stared at the finely inked character for north surrounded by a circle composed of fifty dots. Besides the tradition ANBU tattoo on her other arm, it was the only one that didn't need to be filled with chakra to be seen. Though he loathed the idea of taking her back to a place that had irrevocably traumatized her, her logic seemed sound. "The base is close by if I remember correctly, do you know the way?"

"Of course, I could get us there blindfolded."

...

The Northern base looked surprising pleasant when not tainted by war. Riba hadn't been there since Oto had fallen to Konoha. She had expected to hurt more, recall more of the trauma and horror, but all she felt was acceptance.

Sasuke laid a hand on her shoulder, "so this is where you and Neji got together? Unfortunate that your first time was on a table in a shed," he said as he watched Kakashi for a reaction.

"What do we do now?" Kakashi asked calmly.

"I'm not sure if there's something here I'm supposed to recognize," Riba said as she looked around. Besides the lack of blood, mold, and maimed shinobi, the camp was remarkably unchanged. "Nothing is missing that should be here, and nothing is here that should be missing."

Kakashi nodded, "maybe a contact will meet us here at some point." He pulled out _Icha Icha Return_, and found a comfortable spot along the edge of the pond at the center of the camp. He was irritated that he had been roped into a series of missions with no information and dire consequences for failure. Tsunade's behavior was suspect, but she was a former Hokage and practically ran the village, so he danced to the beat of her drum. Unfortunately, this was the worst possible team to take. Genma was secretly one of the most talented shinobi in the village, but that was overshadowed by having Riba with them. Kakashi's affection for her didn't negate the fact that her ability to follow orders was variable. Worse, she now came packaged with Sasuke, who only responded to her, and would see any hint of resistance that she might show as license to start doing whatever he wanted. And Sasuke was a dick, there was that.

He realized that he had been staring at the same page for the past ten minutes, drowning in his thoughts. Genma, Riba, and Sasuke were sitting on the other end of the pond quietly chatting. Sasuke seemed to be getting along with Genma, making Kakashi wonder if maybe he himself was the problem, and not Sasuke.

"Riba," Kakashi called as he waved for her to come over.

She quickly vaporized recombined before him, crouched with her forearms resting on her knees, "commander?"

His gaze softened, "you will follow my orders on this mission, won't you?"

"I always follow your orders," she said confidently, "except when I don't."

"I'm not playing. I think that Sasuke may become a problem for me if I don't have your full support and unquestioning loyalty."

"My loyalty is my honor," she said, repeating the creed of the Uindo Shadow Assassins as if he should have known better, "don't patronize me."

"Patronize?"

"It's always been a problem between us. You act as though I'm some kind of rebellious child."

"It's not you that I'm worried about."

"Sasuke is under my command. He will do exactly as I say, and when you insult his ability to follow, you are insulting my ability to lead."

"That's not what I meant."

"Good, because I didn't lead the Ferocious Five, the Northern Fifty, and the entire Uindo Army to victory, only to have you question my authority over my own apprentice."

"I'm not looking for a fight here, but Sasuke has said a number of disturbing things about you."

"And you assured me that you wouldn't let him bait you."

He winced, she was right, "that doesn't negate what he said."

"Which was?"

"That Uindo Shadow Assassins kill Konoha citizens for profit."

"That's entirely true," she said pointedly.

"And you don't see a problem with this?"

"Why should I? You kill bad people all the time, but are they really bad_? _Or do you just see them that way because Konoha officials decided to call them enemies? Just so you know, those very same leaders are the ones who pay exorbitant amounts of money to hire Uindo to kill inside your borders. Now, are there any more of Sasuke's frivolous comments that you'd like to discuss?"

"No," he relented.

"I really need you to trust my ability to handle him."

"I just..." he trailed off.

"Just what?"

"Underestimated him, I suppose. He seems to have inherited your ability to talk your way out of anything. I do have to say, you're teaching him well." He reached over and subtly squeezed her gloved hand. The ANBU organization suited her personality, and it was nice to see that she still came down from Uindo to do missions for Konoha, even if it was just for political reasons.

He could feel that he was being watched, and looked over just in time to see Sasuke staring directly at his hand on top of hers, his eyes emotionlessly transfixed.

"Be warned, your apprentice has an obsessive personality," Kakashi said firmly.

"Don't we all," she said as she squeezed his hand and dissolved into the air, recombining next to Genma and Sasuke.

"Sasuke was just talking about his training," Genma said. "I must admit, that appearance altering Jutsu was pretty smooth."

"Ah yes," she said. "We teach our assassins to alter their appearance and to socially engineer their way out of compromising situations." She waved absently at Sasuke, "If you could be so kind as to demonstrate..."

Sasuke grinned invitingly, closed his eyes and slowly run his hands over his face. By the time they had traveled over the back of his head and down his neck, his onyx hair had been completely transformed into a boyishly light blonde. He opened his eyes and winked, showing off piercing light blue eyes.

Genma laughed, "you look so innocent."

Sasuke's expression slowly morphed, his eyes widened in naive surprise and his lips parted slightly, as if he was a child too timid and unsure of himself to speak. He was the model of youthful innocence, Gai would have been in love.

Riba snickered, "save that, we may be able to use it later."

"He's like a whole different person," Genma said as he leaned in and inspected Sasuke's altered appearance. "Uindo Assassins are damn good."

"Your turn," Sasuke said to Riba.

"It's a bit harder for me."

"Why? I thought you were the elite of the elite," Genma said.

"My beast chakra has a bleaching effect on my body. My eyes were once Sasuke's, and dark gray. Over the last three years my chakra has bleached them to gold. It's the same with my hair, it was dark brown when I was born."

"So you can't do it at all?" Gemna said disappointedly.

"I can try." She leaned back and stared at the ground in concentration. Gradually her hair began to lighten, auburn transforming at different rates into a sandy blonde. She struggled with her eyes, turning them from gold to green, and with further effort, to a dark blue. "How do I look?" she asked.

"Not innocent," Genma said with a seductive purr.

Sasuke grinned, "save that, I'd like to use it later."

Riba playfully kicked him in the shin and they all laughed. Across the pond, Kakashi had looked up from his book. Seeing Riba transformed into a blue eyed blonde was strange. She looked remarkably like a few of the women he had slept with. He chuckled inwardly, it was a pretty unique Jutsu.

Seeing her joking around with Sasuke was enough to make the normally subdued Copy-ninja unusually jealous. He sighed and looked down at his book, staring at the images but too immersed in his own thoughts to absorb any of it. Realistically, he was at fault for not having spent more time with her. Sure, the elders, Akatsuki, and their respective duties were contributing factors, but seeing her with Sasuke was making him wish that he had made her more of a priority in his life.

...

Night fell over the base and Kakashi was quick to assign Sasuke the first watch. He did as he was told without question or complaint. It put Kakashi in a slightly better mood, right up until Sasuke's shift was over and he slid into Riba's sleeping bag. He cuddled close, with his arm draped lazily over her waist as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and not the hideously awkward display Kakashi saw it as.

Kakashi had the next shift and spent the time reading _Icha Icha Return_. He sat against a nearby tree and turned to the page he had bookmarked with a napkin from The Little Boxer. It was the part he had been waiting for, the only part of Naruto's pornographic rendition of his life that had any basis in reality. He stared at the illustrated image of Kachi sliding a rum bottle slowly up Ria's thigh. God that bought back amazing memories.

He had been sure that the Fourth Shinobi World War would be the death of them both, and that night would be his only chance to sleep with her before he became just another name on the memorial. She had looked sexy, tasted sexy, and teleported her cloths off in front of him. He remembered every moment, every sound, every touch. It was so vivid in his memories, the second he slid the neck of a rum bottle inside of her and she shuttered at the sudden contact. He brought the warm glass rim to his lips and drank in the uniquely delicious taste of her body mixed with the strong liquor. It was the most erotic moment of his life, one that _Icha Icha_ could never do justice.

He turned the page and glanced over the next few panels. Kachi was licking the rum laced liquid from the satin skin between her legs as it slowly leaked out. _Damn it,_ _why didn't I think of that? _The thought of her soft skin shaking slightly as his lips grazed over her wet folds was seriously beginning to arouse him.

"Oh that's sexy! Why didn't you think of that?" A finger jetted over his shoulder and pointed at an image of Ria moaning in pleasure on the kitchen table as Kachi kneeled between her legs.

"Wow did you sneak up on me? No one can sneak up on me," Kakashi asked.

"Because I'm a master assassin?" Riba replied. "It's my turn to stand guard."

Kakashi looked at the position of the moon in the sky, "I think you have a few more hours."

"No need. I only sleep three hours a night."

"Since when?"

"Since I became the five-tailed dark dragon."

"That can't be true. When we slept together as teenagers, and you were always out for at least eight hours."

"No, I slept for three and rested against your body for five."

"Really? You just laid there while I slept?"

"Well, not always. Sometimes I would get restless and lay my head on your chest and read a book or daydream."

"That's more romantic than I would have expected from you. It kind of changes my perception of our childhood."

"I would never have expected you to call me honey, so I would say that we're even."

Genma and Sasuke began to stir and eventually got up and walked over. Kakashi groaned inwardly as he tried to erase his visible arousal through sheer willpower.

"Did something happen?" Sasuke mumbled exhaustedly.

"Nothing, so you can all go back to bed," Kakashi said curtly.

"We're up now anyway," Genma moaned.

"Fine, since you're all awake, you might as well get some work done. Search the base again."

Genma sighed, "there's no point. If anything was out of place, Riba would have noticed it by now."

"That's not necessarily true," she contradicted. "It's been so long since I've been here that I may have miss something."

"Than look again," Kakashi said, severely hoping that she would lead everyone away from him long enough for his body to relax.

Riba paused, "maybe that's not the way to handle this." Her eyes slowly transformed into her golden Sharingan. She walked to the pond and scanned the base, then stood perfectly still, staring blankly into the distance.

"What are you looking for?" Genma asked.

"Shh," Sasuke snapped. "She's talking to someone. Probably showing Neji the base to see if he notices anything."

The next ten minutes passed slowly while everyone waited for her to reemerge from her Genjutsu. Eventually her eyelids began to flutter and she seemed to become aware of her surroundings.

"That took a while," Sasuke said.

"Yeah, a major vote is coming up in the High Council and Neji wanted to clarify my position. He sends his greetings, by the way, and reminds you to guard me well in his absence."

"You two and your politics," Sasuke said flippantly. "I'll stick to killing."

"What did he say about the base?" Kakashi interrupted.

"He didn't see anything out of place either, but did remind me of something that I had forgotten." She began to unbuckle her ANBU vest, "could everyone please turn around?"

"Wait, are you going to take your cloths off?" Genma asked mirthfully.

"Yes, so if you could," she waved her hand in the direction of the tents behind them.

Genma grinned, "you know, two of us have already seen you naked, and the third would really like to."

"Turn!" she snapped, her threatening tone commanding obedience. They all did an about-face and listened as she shrugged off her cloths and stepped into the pond.

"What exactly are you doing?" Kakashi asked, irritated that she was wet, naked, and standing right behind him.

"Back when the Northern Base was called the Reject Cage and I was in charge, I used to hide our intel in bags that we sank into the pond. The water was blood and mold tainted, and therefore the last place Oto thought to look when we were invaded, fooled them every time. Tsunade saw me go into the pond to get our intel after the fall of Oto."

They could hear her dip below the water. Sasuke looked over and eyed the book resting between Kakashi's fingers. "Aren't you a little old to need an instruction manual?"

"Yes, but you aren't," Kakashi said as he held out the book.

"I have plenty of experience, just ask Riba. Unless you would like me to make you watch again."

Kakashi was so close to reaching over and breaking Sasuke's pretty jaw that he could almost taste the spray of blood that would follow, "I understand that you grew up in an environment where being a dickhead was the currency, but don't think that empathy will stop me from beating you until you cry like a five year old girl."

"More talk," Sasuke hissed. "Go ahead Kakashi, throw the gauntlet and we'll see who the real Sharingan master is."

"You want to finish this?" Kakashi glared darkly.

"Don't," Genma said as he stepped between them. It was rare that Genma dropped his facade, but when he did, it meant that the joke was over. He spoke to Kakashi as if Sasuke wasn't there, "I know that you could easily end this boy with a flash of your Sharingan, but Riba is here, and she is honor bound to defend him. Don't force her to choose between her lover and her apprentice."

"Oh, she won't have to choose," Sasuke retorted, "I happen to be both."

Genma took a deep breath, "no matter who wins, Riba will lose. He's an Uindo Shadow Assassin now, he can't attack you unless you start it. You know what he's doing."

Kakashi remained perfectly still, absorbing the situation. It was the second time that Sasuke had attempted to draw him into a fight, "why are you doing this Sasuke? What do you _want_?"

"I bet you would love a reason, but I wasn't aware that I needed a reason to hate you," Sasuke said.

Riba had obviously trained his social engineering to perfection. He spoke frequently enough to appear open, but never said anything revealing and knew exactly how to psychologically attack.

That's when it hit Kakashi. Riba, like Naruto, possessed the ability to control the room. Her mere presence inspired people to follow, and her words commanded attention. Sasuke had always lacked that ability. He neither a leader nor a follower, not lonely or alone but _lone_, like a wolf. But that was before he was reborn at Riba's side. He must have watched her reign in Uindo and seen something that drew him in like a moth to a flame. She had captivated him, and he was trying to absorb her skills. Sasuke wasn't trying to start a fight, he was trying to keep Kakashi on the defensive. It was just another game, one that Sasuke was using to practice the art of control. He had gained the offensive without throwing a single punch.

Kakashi smiled under his mask, "Oh Sasuke, that was good, really good_._"

Gemna looked at him as if he had three heads, and Sasuke acted as if he wasn't listening. They stood silently after that, until Riba emerged from the pond and put her uniform back on.

"Okay, you guys can turn around," she said as she slipped the handle of a large case into Kakashi's hand.

"What is this?" He asked.

"I'm not sure, but from its clean appearance I would guess that it hasn't been submerged for more then a couple of days. I think it's safe to assume that this is what Tsunade wanted us to find."

Kakashi set the case on the ground and kneeled beside it. He slowly opened the latches and flipped back the lid. Inside was a large, nondescript, white bag.

Genma stared over Kakashi's shoulder, "what is that thing?"

Riba reached over and ran her hand along its surface, "it's a medical case from Uindo. We use them for storing bodies. It's basically just a really big freezer bag."

"Ha! I knew it, they really are freezer bags!" Genma said triumphantly.

Kakashi sighed as he unwrapped the plastic. It stuck to the mass inside, requiring him to peel the sticky material off of a glowing mound of tissue. Instantly, everyone recoiled in shock at the realization that they were staring at a chakra infused human organ.

Genma gaged as bile began to rise in his throat, "oh god, what part is that?"

"Lungs," Kakashi said.

"Why?"

"I don't know. I didn't expect this either."

Riba leaned forward, "this isn't fresh. I would actually say that it's unnaturally old." She reached over to feel its surface and instantly jolted backwards, falling to the ground. She grabber her shaking hand and cradled it against her chest as off she had just pulled it off a burning stove. Sasuke sat down beside her and looked over her hand, nodding to Genma and Kakashi that she was okay.

She sat silently, ignoring them. Genma waved his hand in front of her face to get her attention, "please tell me what you're doing, because I can't handle any more of this Uchiha mystery and suspense shit."

"I'm thinking," she said breathlessly.

"Well then start thinking out loud."

"It's a game."

"No, checkers is a game. This is a glowing mass of nasty."

"What are you suggesting that we do?" Kakashi interrupted.

"We play," Riba said. She looked ominously at Kakashi and Genma, "I think I know why we're here. Tsunade couldn't give out the details of the mission, but by chance, she happened to have two people already in the field who have a history of completing objectives without having to see the orders." Riba leaned onto her knees, "however, there has to be more, otherwise she wouldn't have bothered to send all four of us. I think that when combined, we must hold all the information needed to complete the mission. We just have to put the pieces together."

"Where do we start?" Genma asked.

"Where it all began. I assume that she prepared this case in Konoha. She couldn't tell anyone what the mission was because..." Riba trailed off.

"Spies," Kakashi interrupted. "There are spies all over Konoha, I should know, I've been dodging them most of my life. Which means that like me, Tsunade must want to do something that she couldn't have talked about, probably something illegal. What could she want?"

"To fuck her student?" Genma mocked.

"Or maybe she isn't hiding the mission, but who her employer is," Riba clarified. "At the end of the Fourth Shinobi World War, I confronted Uchiha Madara."

Sasuke nodded, "but you would never kill a fellow Uchiha, so you must have left him alive."

"I did, but not before I ran my blade through his back."

Genma's eyes lit up, "like you did to Neji back during the Jounin exams? I was proctoring back then, and helped pull him off the field. Your sword burned the skin around the wound so bad that no one could repair it but Tsunade."

"Exactly, so assuming that Madara has a similar wound, he currently has a collapsed lung that can't heal. So now he needs two things: transplantable lungs and Tsunade's unique healing chakra."

Sasuke looked dejectedly at Riba then down at the glowing organ, "but he's of the Uchiha bloodline, so to get a transplantable match, he would need organs from a fellow clan member. He's only had access to one other Uchiha, which means that the lungs in this box used to belong to Itachi."

Kakashi respectfully closed the lid, "so how did we end up with it?"

Riba sighed deeply, "after Sasuke killed Itachi, Madara replaced Sasuke's eyes with Itachi's. He must not have disposed of the body. I have a circular tattoo on my back that Itachi filled with his chakra when we were in the Akatsuki so he could keep track of me. I tried to use it to locate his body so that I could resurrect him, but Madara hid somewhere him beyond my mind's reach. Which means that it probably hasn't been properly stored, and has degraded over time."

"Which is why he relocated to Orochimaru's old base," Kakashi said. "Orochimaru spent his life trying to prefect biological manipulation. Madara must have used the medial equipment there to preform and autopsy on Itachi and try and save the lungs."

"But, he still needs Tsunde's chakra to close the wounds, so he decided to make a deal. He used a similar tactic years ago when he agreed to not attack Konoha and in exchange for my induction into the Akatsuki. Except this time, he agreed not to attack Konoha in exchange for Tsunade filling Itachi's lungs with her chakra so that it would seal all his wounds when transplanted."

"So that's it? We're just the delivery boys sent to find Madara and save that asshole's life?" Genma asked.

"Tsunade would never willingly help him," Riba said as she opened the lid and held her hand over the tissue. She focused her dark chakra and let long black strings of opaque energy flow from her fingers. As it approached the surface, it instantly snapped and recoiled back into her hand, "see that? That's what burned me a minute ago. I've only had that happen once before."

"In Orchimaru's lab," Sasuke said. "Tsunade must have filled the tissue with the poison we brought back from the compound. She's planing to save Madara's life and poison him at the same time."

Genma shook his head, "this is a bad plan. If I were Madara, and my enemy showed up at my door with the one thing that I needed to survive, I would sure as hell be looking for a double-cross."

"Which is exactly why he's going to kidnap the messenger," Riba said.

"Exactly...wait what?!"

Kakashi nodded, "she's right. He's probably planing to take hostages and use them to force Tsunade's hand if she tries to trick him, which she is."

"He's not going to take Riba hostage, he's going to kill her. She ruined his attempt at world domination and put a window in his chest. I don't think he wants to be friends," Genma said.

"She's dead," Kakashi insisted.

"Exactly, see? Even Kakashi agrees with me, and when's the last time that happened?"

"No, I mean shes' actually dead, so is Sasuke. They were killed during the war as far as most of the world knows. Unless Madara has politically high ranking spies in Uindo, which I highly doubt, he has no way of knowing that they're alive. Madara will take us hostage, but what he won't know is that Konoha already has an extraction team prepaired to get us out."

"Yes, but people have seen you two wandering around the Rouge Territory. How do we know that they haven't already told Madara about you?" Genma asked.

Riba grinned, "Many have clammed to be Sasuke or I over the years. If we play the game right, we can make ourselves look like just another pair of fakes, or maybe go another route entirely, either way, we'll handle it."

Kakashi stood and picked the case up, "how do we find Madara?"

"You have something that he desperately needs. I'm sure that once the case passes into the Rogue Territory, he'll find you."


	6. White Nights

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

Riba looked down at the rough wooden table in the meeting shed. The mold that had taken over the Northern Fifty base camp was strong in the air, and traces of blood had been tracked in by the perpetually injured members of the Reject Cage. The room was small, barely large enough to hold the six chairs they had cobbled together from stray pieces of swamp wood.

Her body was failing her. _Immortal_ was such a loose term, it was more like an extended life that continued on as long as she wasn't injured severely enough to die. The dark chakra in her veins and the sea of scales resting just under her skin could protect her from most heavy attacks, but illness? Fatigue? Mental instability? No one, not even the great five-tailed dark dragon, could overcome the slow decay of the body when there wasn't enough food, water, or medicine to maintain it.

She had given everything she had to keep her team alive. They had a saying in Uindo: death is the price you pay for the privilege of having lived, so make sure your life is worth the price.

She laughed morosely, no one deserved to die in a useless war with Oto over nothing more than where the Fire Country's border ended. If she let even one of her men die in this hell hole, they would have payed too a high price. She had to get them through this, and back to Konoha where they could enjoy a life of doing...well, whatever it is that humans did.

A floorboard creaked slightly and then suddenly stopped. Someone was trying to sneak up on her and had failed miserably with a single misstep, not surprising considering how mutilated and fatigued everyone's minds and bodies were. She looked up from her musty maps and glanced over her shoulder at the door.

Neji was standing still in the doorway, topless and wearing tattered black ANBU pants with various rips that exposed the creamy white skin underneath. His chest was chiseled and toned as months of continuous battle had hardened him. He would have looked purely statuesque had he not been marred by scars and wounds in various states of infection. His forearms rested on either side of the doorframe as he leaned in the entranceway, knowingly blocking the only exit.

She tried to read his intentions, but his face was blank. The pearl hue of his eyes had been tainted by broken vessels that had leaked blood into his iris, and his short, hastily cut, brown hair was ragged and dirty.

She turned to face him, but he didn't move or speak, just stared hungrily and slowly let his gaze drift up her body, fixating momentarily on her bare legs and arms where patches of her scales jetted out at weird angles from under burgundy skin, bleeding internally. He looked over her short matted hair, and eventually at her amber eyes.

The world seemed to silence as neither moved, and the heat in the room chocked them. His eyes twitched slightly in the corners, the familiar movement that signaled his veins to fill with chakra. His Byakugan was imminent, and therefore so was his attack.

She had seen this coming for quite a while. It was a savage war that had made them savages, and Neji had been hit the hardest. The Hyuuga seal on his head had subjected him to the constant fear of being randomly killed by the whims of his uncle, the head of the main family. He never knew if at any moment they would get paranoid and sacrifice him to prevent the possibility of Orochimaru capturing him and discovering the Hyuuga bloodlines' secrets. As the months had gone by, they had received less and less correspondence from Konoha, until finally they were cut off completely. Everyone knew that eventually the Hyuuga would consider him lost and act accordingly. The added stress on top of the devastatingly traumatic nature of the war had been slowly eating away at his sanity. Originally, they had only tortured Oto shinobi when absolutely necessary, but as time went on, they began to severely torture any enemy that was foolish enough to be captured. Neji specifically had a habit of slicing off the right arms of prisoners and sending them back across the border, rendered useless by their inability to preform seals, as a warning of the wrath of the Northern Fifty.

Her other ANBU had begun to fear him, not enough to shy away from his command, but just enough to never look him in the eye. He had, however, began to stare deeply at her. As her Royal Guard he was always at her side, and over time his dry emotionless stares had grown progressively more intense and strained.

The veins in his face began to bulge as he strode silently into the room. She stood motionless, figuring that if he was going to attack someone, it was best that it was her. He was, after all, just as much her responsibility as she was his.

His movements were blindingly swift and precise. He grabbed her neck and squeezed until she began to gasp, and quickly pushed her against the wall. Lifting her just enough so that her toes could barely reach the floor.

"Put your hands up," he said darkly, just above a whisper.

She glanced at her sword laying on the table. She hadn't pulled it on him, but at that moment part of her wished that she had. She imagined herself loping off his head so fast that the last thing he would see was his body falling to the floor beside him. The unfortunately reality was that she could never do that to her clansmen. He would just have to kill her.

"Now," he snarled as he squeezed even tighter, beginning to collapse her windpipe.

She showed no fear, no emotion, no weakness, and lifted her hands. Instantly, he grabbed her wrists with his free hand and lifted them above her head. He leaned in and whispered threateningly in her ear, "if you dare scream, we will finally have a death in the Northern Fifty, and by this time tomorrow I will be the leader of the Reject Cage."

He slowly released his grip around her neck, just enough for her to breath without actually letting go. She didn't make a sound, only starred into his eyes with feigned fearlessness. His body was flush against hers and she could feel his chest raising and lowering in shallow breaths.

He shifted slightly and she shuttered. A wicked grin crept over his face and his eyes narrowed, "finally a reaction."

"A nail is pushing between my scales and into my back," she replied honestly, struggling not to wince.

"Describe it."

"It's a piece of metal."

"Describe the _pain_," he commanded as he pushed harder against her body, driving the nail deeper into her skin.

"Piercing," she said evenly, not betraying a hint of the intense pain she was feeling. Even with blood dripping down her back, she was not about to give him the satisfaction.

His hand tightened around her wrists and he whispered hotly into the shell of her ear, "you're strong, I like that..."

His hand left her neck and trailed over the wide collar of her Uchiha shirt, over her chest, and down to her black shorts. She could feel him hardening against her leg, and he wasn't attempting to stop her from feeing it. He ran his hand up the inside of her thigh, under her shorts, pausing at the crease of her leg, rubbing his fingers through stray drops of the slick liquid her body was unconsciously producing.

He lifted his chin and looked down at her with a grin, quite pleased to see that she was uncontrollably getting aroused. His long fingers pushed farther under her shorts and into the swollen folds underneath. His expression suddenly went blank as he rubbed the small web of skin at her opening, instantly realizing what it meant.

Riba watched, knowing full well that he hadn't expected her to be a virgin. Really, that was misleading, she had just never been with a man. She had been between Sakura's legs, and had Kurenai between hers on many whorehouse assassination missions. Their targets always seemed to love a show. However, Neji wasn't even in the realm of thinking straight and wasn't going to figure that out, and she wasn't going to tell him.

"Stop me..." he said, almost pleadingly. Somewhere inside his twisted mind, his conscience was sneaking out. He pulled his hand back and let go of her wrists. Two swift steps and he was at the door.

"Stop," she commanded brazenly, and he jerked to a halt. She grinned inwardly, he had after all asked her to stop him.

Before he could turn, she grabbed her sword and in a single swift motion pushed his shoulder against the wall. Her fingernails dug into his skin as she held him in place. He jumped slightly at the feeling of an object being pushed into his chest over his heart. It took him a second to realize that her sword was still sheathed, and the tip was pushing into a raw wound that he had received in combat a few days ago. He refused to wince at the pain, not wanting to give _her_ the satisfaction.

"Oh Neji," she said condescendingly, "I'm afraid that you've come much too far to back down now."

"Once I start, I won't be able to stop," his voice labored. He was straining to hold back, teetering on the edge of self control. She watched him struggle, knowing full well that all it would take was a slight push to break him.

"You couldn't possibly have thought you would get away with this unscathed. If it's a fight you're looking for, by god, you shall have one..." She stood unwaveringly still, letting his Byakugan drink in the sight of her body's arousal.

He made the first move, savagely knocking the sword from her hand. She made no attempt to pick it up as the shed was too small for serious sword play anyway. She leapt onto the table and slid across to the other side, and kicked the edge with her foot and pushing the table across the floor, hoping that with her superior speed she could use it to trap him against the wall. Before it could crush his abdomen, he leapt on top of it.

The space was too confined, the achilles heel of her Taijutsu. She jumped onto the table and immediately aimed for his neck, hoping to hit him hard enough to make his windpipe swell shut. He blocked her attack effortlessly, close quarters was opportune to his fighting style. This was his territory, and Riba was outmatched. She tried to use her speed to force him into a defensive position, blocking his kicks and punches while giving him no time to attack, but her body was fatigued and injured, making her tire rapidly.

He dipped low and grabbed the back of her leg, and feel on top of her. Before she could push him off, he restrained her arms and legs. She struggled, but had been out of chakra for days and was too weak to escape his grasp.

His blood stained eyes stared down at her hungrily. He immediately went for her neck, sucking wetly along her collar bone. There was a vacancy in his expression, operating purely on desire, rough and unrefined. She couldn't stop herself from raising her chin a degree to give him more access. His body was heavy against hers, and she could feel the muscles in his chest tighten as he panted. She molded against him, feeling the humid air on her skin be replaced by his heat. He was growing impatient, his regal lips swollen from the rough friction of dragging them across her skin. He slowly lifted one of his arms off of her, watching for any sign that she would attack.

She slithered her arm around him and ran her hand down the firm planes of his back, feeling him move against her touch. He was hard against her hip, the anticipation of which was making the emptiness inside her ache. His hand quickly slid down and pulled at her shorts, tearing the tattered cloth away. The friction of the fabric burned her skin, making her strain not to gasp.

He roughly pulled up her shirt and kicked off his pants. There wasn't going to be any patience or foreplay, it was too late for that. It didn't matter, his hot breath against her flesh as he explored the contours of her breasts was easily enough to prepare her. His desire making her slick enough to be ready. She slid her legs forcefully out from under him and wrapped them around his hips, making it easier for him to align himself. She could feel him pushing at her opening, stopped only by the small web of skin half covering it.

He pushed hard and she erupted in a closed mouth scream at the feeling of her body stretching and molding to his shape, her hip muscles throbbing from the pressure. She shifted against him, felt her blood heat and waited for him to do something...anything. One hand rested on her hip bone and the other still held down her other arm. She rubbed between his shoulder blades with ghosted touches, but he didn't respond. He stared absently, as if he was looking straight through her, his mouth open slightly. Her hip muscles began to instinctively contract, her body trying to force him to release her from the longing that he had fanned hot. The awe in his eyes betrayed him, he didn't know what a woman would feel like, what to expect.

He shifted slightly and groaned low in his throat, a short deep thrust, and then another. Pushing far in an filling her entirely as he built a rhythm. His hand tightened around her wrist as she arched her back and tilted her hips forward, forcing his pelvic muscles to rub against a sensitive patch of nerves. Each thrust felt too strong against such a delicate area and her body tried to recoil from the sensation, but she knew that if she held out, the result would be overwhelming.

She felt him breath deep, struggling to remain quite as he moved on instinct. He was just an observer, unable to control his movements but enjoying the show. The slick sound of their bodies rubbing together made her feel raw and animalistic. His moist skin slid against hers as he thrusted harder and she arched higher, she was _close_.

The muscles in her pelvis tightened as the indescribable sensation was building. All her attention went to the feeling as the pressure broke into squeezing pulses, rhythmically tensing around him.

The feel of her hot muscles throbbing tightly was too much for him, finally making him release against his control. He slowed to a stop and laid his seal covered forehead on the table beside her flushed face. Bits of his hair fluttered against her skin as he shivered from the final reactions of his body before it calmed. Even as the hot liquid leaked and dripped slowly from between them onto the table, they remained still, panting.

She looked around the room and decided to change the environment of the Genjutsu. The rough walls became smooth and dark, and the surface of the table softened to a blanket underneath them. Their wounds slowly melted away and their hair grew out in long sweeping stokes. He smiled at her, and she mused at how different he was now. Back then it had taken weeks for him to accept what had happened and give in to the growing itch inside his body for more, but he had come back, he always came back, and she always welcomed him into her bed.

"So, where are you casting this Genjutsu from?" he asked tiredly.

"A sleeping bag at the Northern Base in the Fire Country. Genma and Kakashi are sleeping and Sasuke is on watch. Where are you?"

"In our chambers at the High Council Building. I was thinking of leaving for our mansion for a few days, but work got the better of me."

"Then I feel bad for disturbing your rest."

"No need," his voice dragged from his mouth as he stretched his arms. "I actually feel privileged that you have the ability to recreate that environment for us."

"Well, it's not like it was complex."

He rolled onto his side and leaned on his elbow, looking down at her with his pearlescent eyes. His long brown hair pooled beside her face, silky smooth against her cheek. She ran her fingers along his forehead where the Hyuuga seal used to be, "do you ever regret that night in the shed?"

"Regret? No, but it certainly isn't how I expected our first time to be."

"What did you expect?"

"All young Hyuuga men fantasize about sleeping with the Sovereign at some point, I suppose. You go to Uindo as a child, sit in the Military Chamber, and watch the Sovereign sit on her ominous throne and preside over us. You wonder what she looks like to her Royal Guard when he takes her back to their chambers helps her out of her cloths..."

"So you were picturing my chambers then?"

"Basically yes. When I volunteered to be your guard, I knew that your pleasure would become my responsibility. I just thought that it would be in an ornate bed covered in fine linens, not on a rotting wooden table after a day of combat."

"I'm sorry you were disappointed."

"Not at all, I prefer it sordid and taboo. Our clan is dripping with ceremony and tradition, and that's exactly what it would have felt like in our chambers, a ceremony," he breathed deeply, "we're bound not just by blood, but by war. That wouldn't have happened had we been restricted by our duties in Uindo."

"It wouldn't have been such a great ceremony anyway. I was surprised to see that you didn't have the experience that your uncle had led me to believe you had."

"Well, I was never really interested in dealing with the whims of normal women. I suspect you feel similarly."

"Yes, I tend to stick mostly to the noble bloodlines for my trysts," she grinned in satisfaction and relaxed silently for a what felt like a pleasant eternity.

"So, why are you upset?" He asked with a calm smile.

"Do I look upset?"

"No, but you only recreate the shed when you're looking to burn off your irritation with roughhousing."

"Unfortunately, you're correct," she sighed. "It's really just a great deal of petty drama."

"Do you want to talk about?"

She rolled onto her side and draped her arm over his waist, "do you really want to know?"

"Part of my duties as your guard are to advise you, even in matters of petty drama."

She smirked, "It's truly petty. Sasuke and Kakashi are spending every waking moment trying to devise new ways to kill each other without actually killing each other."

"We knew that this would happen once Kakashi was returned to Konoha, it was only a matter of time. I tried to talk to Sasuke about it a few months ago, but you know how well he listens to me."

"Normally I would have just kept them separated, but we got suck with Kakashi and Genma on a black-ops mission, of which they are becoming increasingly distracted from."

"That's strange. Admittedly, I've never liked Kakashi, but I wouldn't have figured him the type to get distracted on a mission."

"I think I've inadvertently taught Sasuke how to severely get underneath Kakashi's skin. Apparently, he actually was paying attention to my lessons on social engineering."

"What are they fighting over?"

"Dominance, pride, my time, pick one."

"I see where this is going. Unfortunately, they have a long history that you're not a part of. Do you want my advice?"

"I always want your advice."

"Then I advise you to stay out of it."

"Based on what?"

"Just trust me. You may not realize it, but my instinct tells me that you're making their rivalry much worse. They were fighting long before you came around, so all you'll accomplish by intervening is to give them a prize to fight over."

"So your suggesting that I say nothing and let them bicker?"

"Yes. Either they'll get over this, or they won't."

"Or the third option, that they drive me crazy."

"If it gets really bad, just come back to Uindo for a few months. I would rather stand behind your throne as your guard, than sit in it as your voice. And it would be nice to have you in our bed at night," he grinned, "but no hurry. Since you've made me immortal, I have all the time in the world."

"Thank you," she said sincerely.

"My pleasure, my Sovereign."

"I hate to say this, but I have to pretend to wake up soon, it's almost morning and they think I'm sleeping."

"I probably should get up as well. The High Council is voting today on the request to double the breeding of war birds. What do you want me to tell them, by the way?"

"If they're also willing to recruit more archers and aviary trainers, and build a whole new facility to house them all before the chicks hatch, then vote in favor. Otherwise, vote down the proposal. I know that we can afford it, but I don't like how cavalier they are about approving edicts when we don't have the facilities already in place to support them."

"I'll relay the message. Good luck with the boys," he teased as he leaned in to give her a gentle kiss.

She smiled against his soft lips and dissolved the Genjutsu.


	7. Good Bad Girl

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

"...and then Sakura got _really_ angry. She slammed her glass down on the bar and told Naruto that she only lost her virginity to you and Kurenai because it was better to lose it to her teammates than the disgusting men that she was about to face on the mission. And if he had such a problem with it, he should have manned up and fixed it himself." Genma's senbon flipped up and his eyebrow arched, underscoring his point.

"How did Naruto not already know this? It was years ago and he's just now getting the memo?" Riba asked.

"Well, is it true? Or was she just saying that to hurt him?"

"Of course it's true! Kurenai and I gave her what had been given to us when we first started out."

"Whoa! Does this happen frequently with ANBU ladies?"

"More than you might imagine. Missions don't wait for the men of Konoha to man up."

"Ah, I'm beginning to see a whole new way for me to do my duty for my country."

Genma and Riba laughed hardily as they walked through the forest back to the Rogue Territory. Kakashi and Sasuke walked a few paces behind. Whether they were ignoring each other or just silently planing their next moves, she wasn't sure. At least Genma was there to keep her company, she had known him since she first became a Jounin, and they had always gotten along.

"Want to see a trick?" he asked as he reached up and grabbed a handful of cherries from a low hanging branch.

"This isn't the dirty kind of trick is it?"

"No...well, maybe." He slipped his senbon behind his ear and dropped one of the cherries into his mouth. After a few seconds of silent walking, he opened his mouth to show her the stem, resting on his curled tongue, neatly tied into a knot.

"I bet I can do that," she retorted.

He tossed her one of the cherries and she caught it in her mouth, in seconds she stuck out her rolled tongue with the knotted stem.

"Damn you're fast. Please tell me there's a story behind that," he purred.

She held up her arm, letting chakra fill the tattoos on her wrist. She pointed to one of the lettered bands, "this was awarded to me upon my completion of the Uindo senbon mastery exam. I'm sure that you can figure out the rest."

"In all the years we've know each other, I've never seen you with a senbon."

She grinned playfully, "I'm never without them, I'm just a bit more sly about it than you are." Her head tipped back and she shoot a thin piece of metal from between her lips into the air and caught it with her tongue as it came back down. Her jaw flexed slightly and she opened her mouth to show him that the small senbon was nowhere to be found.

"How?" Genma asked in awe.

"I had canals surgically implanted inside the roof of my mouth. I got the first one when I was seven and the last one a few years ago." She smiled, "want to see a trick?"

"Please tell me it's dirty."

"Decide for yourself," she leaned her head back and shot six senbon in series straight into the air, and caught them all as they fell. She slid them back into their respective canals and showed him her open mouth, seemingly empty.

"I'm in love," he snickered. "What do you think of that Kakashi?"

"I think that it's all fun and games until someone loses an eye," he winked at Riba with his scared eyelid and she laughed mirthfully. He loved when she did that, her smile was intoxicating.

They finally found the river that signaled their close proximity to the Rogue Territory. Sasuke had been mercifully quite on the trip, making Kakashi question his plan to reap some petty vengeance.

Kakashi kneeled on the sandy river bank and looked around, "we're near the middle of the border. Genma, scout ten miles to the left. Sasuke, ten miles to the right. Look for any signs of traps or ambushes. We need to put the case directly into Madara's hands, and the last thing we need is for some other criminal to snatch it from us."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed and his posture stiffened, "I have no intention of leaving my mentor's side."

"And why not? What do you think is going to happen while you're away?"

"What you do isn't my concern," he said curtly. "But I have no intention of taking orders from anyone who isn't a fellow Uchiha. You don't deserve to order me around."

"Sasuke," Riba interjected. "How can you lead if you don't know how to follow? That's the whole point of sending the Sovereign to the outlying countries."

"I can learn that from you," he snarled.

"In the Fire Country, I'm not a Sovereign. Kakashi is a senior Jounin, even I have to do what he says."

Sasuke began to walk in the direction of the bordered with an unnaturally calm stride, "be careful would be unfortunate for you to end up stuck in one of Madara's prisons, no one knowing where you are, missing in action..."

Kakashi smiled smugly, "oh Sasuke you're so cute, worrying about my wellbeing."

Ignoring the comment, Sasuke disappeared into the forest. Genma followed shortly behind, giving Kakashi a knowing grin as he left.

...

_"Oh Kachi, I could never do such a thing!" _

_He dragged a finger over her lips, silencing her. _

_Her protests were worthless, not stopping him from_

_ pushing her hand down his pants..._

"I'm surprised to see that you're still reading that," Kakashi said.

Riba looked over to see Kakashi put on his blue Jounin pants after having gone for a swim. She sat with her back against a tree, reading his book to pass the time as Genma and Sasuke had been gone for quite a while, and she was getting bored. She was tolerant, however, as Kakashi probably needed a reprieve from Sasuke. It had been so long since she was able to just sit in his presence and relax. This was the kind of life she wanted with him, no pressure or demands, just time to exist alongside each other. Love was nice when it was simple.

"Ria," she scoffed. "What a silly name."

Kakashi sat across from her, leaning back onto his elbows. The sun shown warm on his face and chest, calming him, "yeah, it was a pretty poor attempt to protect our anonymity, but in Naruto's defense, Ria is a pretty common name. Whereas, I've never seen another Riba."

"It's a nickname, the root of which is a common in Uindo. My parents probably picked it so that I would fit in."

He raised his head slightly and arched a silver eyebrow, "nickname? You never told me that. What's your real name?"

"Ribaasu."

"How strange...er...pretty. Does it mean anything?"

"_Reverse. _It's a reference to when you use an opponent's attack against them. It's a warrior's name, but looses something in the translation I'm afraid."

"Mmm, okay."

She looked over her book at him. He was the picture of comfort, legs spread out, leaning back and enjoying the pleasant weather. It was strange to see him without a shirt and mask. She watched droplets of water slowly slide over the rippled muscles in his abdomen and become absorbed in the fabric of his pants. A small stream of water flowed over his ANBU tattoo and down the curvature of his bicep.

"I didn't think that Uchiha could blush," his said with a cocky edge.

He was staring at her with a lazy, lidded eyes. Strands of his silver hair had fallen haphazardly against the side of his face, and his dark eyes and light complexion made him look like an arctic wolf. His thin lips were curled into a smug smirk that was devilishly attractive.

"Well, I am reading porn," she said nonchalantly.

"And?" He prodded.

"And you're not wearing your mask. I'm surprised to see that you finally got over the discomfort of taking it off."

"And?"

"And _what_ Kakashi? What exactly are you digging for?"

"Nothing specific. I just wanted to see what you would admit to if I pushed you."

"You're such a bully."

"You apparently like your men that way, given your past choices."

She snapped the book shut and sat it on her lap, opting to ignore his comment.

"Finished already?" He teased.

"There's nothing here that I haven't seen before."

"I doubt that."

"How old are we? How many Geisha missions have I been on over the years? It would be impossible for me to not to have those experiences."

"So you're saying that you've done everything in that book? _everything?_"

"Yes, even this..." Without looking, she flipped to a random page and held up the book to solidify her point.

"Do you even know what's on that page?"

"Doesn't matter, I've done it."

"Perhaps, but frankly you seem far too refined. I can't picture the leader of Uindo in that position."

She turned the book and quickly looked over the page, "you're kidding right?"

Actually he wasn't. He couldn't picture an Uchiha or Hyuuga engaging in anything but the blandest of sex, and only for the purpose of procreation. He had unfortunately seen Riba and Sasuke get rather wild, but he attributed that to a one off chance. Sasuke was not the typical Uchiha.

Although...she was a senbon master. Didn't that require an oral fixation by it's very nature? And unlike her clan counterparts, she was comparatively deviant. She was bred from the finest two clans in Konoha and educated in the most prestigious academy in Uindo, yet she fought rough in dirty wars and clean in Uindo military strikes. He was undecided on whether to believe her, it could go either way.

"You're a very attractive man Kakashi," she said with slow emphasis.

"I know," he replied suspiciously.

"You don't think that I would suck your dick?"

He froze, disarmed, caught completely and utterly off guard. Never, in all the years that he had known her, had she _ever_ said anything like that to him. Her words iterated over and over in his head. She was _dirty talking_ him.

It was the fastest erection he had ever got.

He bent his legs in an attempt to hid his arousal, but it was uncomfortable and she was extremely perceptive. She began to crawl towards him. Suddenly the form of her body, accentuated by her tight fitting ANBU uniform, dominated his thoughts. As if his body had already decided what it was going to do and was beginning to absorb all the information he was going to need to do it.

Sex and missions didn't mix, and were forbidden for a number of excellent reasons. He steeled himself and tried to sound commanding, "I didn't mean that as a challenge."

"Getting shy all of a sudden?" She said defiantly. "You know that you're not going to stop me."

The definitive tone in her voice was weakening his resolve. He had quickly veered away from talking her down to rationalizing why he should let her keep going. After all, their first time had been his doing. He had been the one to spread her out on the kitchen table. There had been no questions or discussions, he had just done it. Maybe it was her turn.

"Besides, it's my turn," she said as she parted his resisting knees.

Her coincidental words gave his body the all confirmation it needed. He grunted slightly at the touch of her hand on his thigh, knowing that he had given in. _Damn her for being perfectly spoken._ He quickly activated his Sharingan so that he could absorb the moment for later reviewing.

Her fingers glided along his rippled abdomen and it twitched at her touch. He was warm, radiant with body heat. His hand moved timidly onto her shoulder as he attempted to casually glance around their surrounding, keeping an eye out for their teammates.

_How foolish, _she thought_._ She was half Hyuuga and could feel if anyone were to approach, though she ha no intention o reminding him of that. Watching the powerful Copy-ninja show a bit of trepidation was all part of the fun.

A rough piece of debris ground into her knee, but she ignored it as she pushed his hesitant thighs farther apart. She stroked him once with her lips over the smooth fabric of his pants and heard the ragged sliding sound of his hand dragging over the sand. His zipper glided down under her fingers and she slid her hand into course hair and pulled him out.

He shuttered slightly at her touch. "Relax big boy," she teased. He seemed to like it when she talked dirty, it made him even harder. She absorbed the detail and texture of his head as it slipped smooth between her lips. His knees jerked weakly at her shoulders as she built a wet rhythm, sliding down to her grip and up again.

His pretty face was so arousing, an absent grin that twitched at each moment she made, watching her with distant eyes. His Sharingan was fixed on the curve of her mouth and followed it as she moved. _Pervert_, she though, knowing that he was making a mental map to save in his mind for all time. His hand passed from her shoulder to her head, loosely drifting into her hair and resting on her scalp, as if he was trying to feel even more of her movement.

She could see his abdomen tense. His lips had parted slightly and his open-mouth breathing was audible, even over the sounds of the river beside them. Her jaw and lips burned, but she still took him deeper over her tongue until the curve of her throat prevented her from going any further. Everything increased, the pressure of her sucking, her knowing smile around him, it was nice to be in control this time.

His stifled cry and the jerk of his body at its apex followed the rhythmic throbbing in her mouth and the thick lingering taste of salt. His fingers dropped from her neck and caught the top of her ANBU vest. He leaned his head back and remained still, panting and recovering.

She swiftly tucked him away and zipped up his pants. Instantly, she was on her feet and over to his cloths, tossing pile onto his stomach with a 'thud'.

"They'll be back soon."

"How can you tell?" He asked, his breath labored.

"I'm Hyuuga. I just know."

He pulled on his shirt with as much energy as he could muster. Really, he just wanted to go to sleep. He looked at her, facing the forest with her back to him, infamous sword strapped tightly to her vest and staring at some unknown presence that she alone could sense. She was a mystery wrapped in an enigma wrapped in a sexy body. Every time he was sure that he knew her, she'd surprise him. Her demure personality was back on, though the nature of it had changed in his mind, knowing the seduction that she was capable of.

He tripped slightly as he stood up and pulled on his mask, "how do I look?"

She casually looked him over, "like you cut a tube sock in half and pulled one end over your head."

"Is that what you really think of my mask?!" He ask as if he had been scandalized.

"No, but now you're going to think about it every time you look in the mirror."

"Damn your conniving tongue."

"Poor choice of words," she said as she gave him a wicked wink.

She was right about Sasuke and Genma, they were getting close enough for him to sense their presence. He lazily walked behind a tree and pick up the case. It had been a good choice to hide it just out of her view. It couldn't be easy for her to know that part of her dead lover was being lugged round. He wouldn't have been happy to have Rin's lungs in a box, it would have silently broken his heart.

Genma arrived first, and Sasuke shortly after. Kakashi looked them over, "is there anything along the border that we should know about?"

"Nothing," Sasuke lamented. "Which I'm sure you knew before you sent us on this fool's errand."

"I didn't see anyone either," Genma noted.

"Good, then at least we won't have a problem getting the case into the territory..."

"Wait," Riba said, cutting him off, "do you mean that you didn't see anyone suspicious, or that you didn't see anyone at all?"

Genma looked puzzled, "I didn't see anyone suspicious because I didn't see anyone."

"Same," Sasuke confirmed.

"That seems suspicious to me. I've spent a great deal of time in the Rogue Territory, and I've never seen the border be so clear. There are usually bandit groups loitering around, waiting to accost anyone who is foolish enough to cross without an escort."

"Do you think Madara is involved?" Kakashi asked.

"Possibly, he my have recruited all the local bandits to be his thugs. If we're right about him planing to hold the delivery team hostage, then he may somehow already know who is carrying the case. Frankly, it would take an army to trap you and Genma."

"It's possible, but I'm afraid that we won't know anything about his resources until we're within them. We split up here, Genma and I will see you guy when you rescue us."

"Sasuke and I will not fail you."


	8. Assassin's Doctrine

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

"Please bring a bottle of your finest wine for my wife and I," Sasuke said to the busty young waitress leaning coyly over the table.

"Sure thing," she purred as she walked away, making sure to throw Riba a jealous scowl before disappearing into the kitchen.

Sasuke ran his hand though his blonde hair. Coupled with the innocent blue eyes, he was the gentlest looking man imaginable. He dusted off a bit of lint from his plain navy shirt. The restaurant was high-class and quite, just the way they liked it. If the rest of the town was similar, they would have no problem resting there until Kakashi and Genma needed them.

The young waitress came back with a lavish looking bottle and two crystal glasses. The scent of the sweet liquor as she poured it lead Sasuke to request that the bottle be left at the table. Obviously they were about to undertake yet another S-rank mission while intoxicated, something that both Riba and Sasuke had become quite fond of.

"You think that Madara will be foolish enough to take them to Orochimaru's old headquarters?" He asked as he swirled the red liquor around the inside of his glass.

"I'm counting on it. It's the only place that has all the necessary medical equipment. Besides, Madara is dying, he isn't going to have the surgery in a place he isn't familiar with, and he certainly isn't going to let his hostages out of his sight."

"Until he kills them, which he'll do the minute they're no longer useful."

"Which is why we have to time this perfectly. We need to extract Kakashi and Genma after the transplant, but before he disposes of them."

"And that will be when?"

"I'm not sure. I suppose that we'll have to guess."

"Guess? You want to guess about something that needs to be timed perfectly?"

"Essentially yes, though if our skills are as good as I hope, we'll be guessing from the inside."

He tipped back his head and finished his glass in a single swallow, "what would happen if we didn't bother to rescue them at all?" He said, exaggerating the darkness in his voice and winking at her.

"You look too innocent for me to take you seriously," she teased. "Besides, Kakashi ordered me to rescue them, and I'm ordering you."

"Madara has every thug in the land protecting him. How exactly do you propose that we get in?"

"Through the front door, armed only with the Shadow Assassin's Doctrine."

"Ah yes, of course."

Riba cast him a questioning glance, "...of which you know by heart, right?"

"Right."

"Which is why you wouldn't have a problem reciting them to me."

Sasuke topped off her wine glass in a not so subtle attempt to encourage her intoxication, "do we really need to go through this right now?" He said with a coy smile to enhanced the effect.

Riba put the cool crystal to her lips, "don't even think of trying to pull the _but I'm your lover _card with me. I'm still your mentor and you're still my apprentice, regardless of our nightly activities." She snickered lightheadedly as the alcohol began to invade her senses, "might I remind you that the doctrine has risen out of thousands of years worth of Uindo's history and experience."

Sasuke sighed as he give in, "misinformation _is_ information."

"Which means?"

"That by flooding your target with false information, you increase the chance that they'll overlook compromising facts by assuming that they're just more rumors."

"Well done. Two?"

"One alone, two as a couple. When you have more than one target, get them in the same location and kill them at the same time. If you try to kill them separately, you run the risk one will find out and decide to go into hiding, making your job that much harder."

"Very good, please continue."

"The truth is stronger than a lie, but a scandal is stronger than a truth." He paused, "I'm not entire sure how to apply that one."

"If a doctor says that the cause of death was blunt force trauma, but the scene was falsified to suggest that the victim was poisoned by his cousin, who is also a prostitute that he was having an affair with, guess which one will filter through to the media? Lies become accepted as fact if they're repeat enough."

"Oh, that's sly."

"And effective. The more scandalous you make the circumstances, the more people will _want_ to believe it. People prefer scandal over bland truth, whether they realize it or not."

"Ah yes, well that was educational," Sasuke said pleasantly.

"Sasuke."

"Would you like another drink?"

"Stop stalling," she snapped. "Recite the final rule. You know, the one that you periodically fail at."

"Be fluid into an empty glass," he bit out.

"Which means?"

He grabbed her empty glass, "this glass is like a mission. I go into the mission like wine into the glass, molding myself to the conditions. I become whoever I need to be to get close to my target."

"Even if that means what?"

"Appearing weak," he scoffed.

He look blankly into the distance. The young waitress sitting at the bar arched her back and lifted her chest, thinking he was staring at her. "I'm not sure that I want to appear weak, even for the sake of a high profile mission."

"Of course you don't! No one enjoys acting weak. Remember, it's all just an act. On the inside you're still a badass."

He grinned, hearing crude language spoken in such a refined tone never failed to amused him. He poured the last of the wine into his glass, "I'll see what I can do."

...

Orochimaru's former headquarters was located in the center of a putrid swamp. Normally they would have traversed it in dissolved form, but rule four required that they walk. It was an area that Sasuke was painfully familiar with, and thus navigated them directly to the stony entrance. The pile of rubbled rocks in the shape of a cave entrance was a semi-convincing facade. It looked especially mundane compared to the vast labyrinth below it.

"Look at the rocks," Sasuke whispered as they approached.

"What about them?"

"Orochimaru had that hideous green moss applied to make the facility appear old and abandoned. See the hand prints and scoffs? A shinobi would never have been so sloppy. You may have been right about Madara enlisting thugs."

"Of course I am, no one else is available. This is an advantage, they won't be very observant or know what to be suspicious of."

Two steps into the cave and Madara's thugs were on them. The four men were large, to be sure, but dirty and plain. Their disheveled hair and ill fitting cloths made it apparent that they were nothing more than common thieves.

Three of them stood in the shadow of the clay wall, a surprisingly smart move, while the largest and most devastatingly ragged came toe to toe with Riba. He looked her over as if she was a sweet dessert, lingering over the curves apparent through her plain black clothing.

He seemed to completely ignore her falsified dark brown hair and light gray eyes. Over the years, she had spent a great deal of time contemplating what she would have looked like had she remained human, and this was the result. A combination of the Uchiha and Hyuuga color pallet. It seemed like such a waste to try it out on such a loathsome man.

"You look strange missy," the man spat out as he laughed at some internal joke.

His crude voice irked her, but she made an attempt to smile anyway, "that's probably because I'm an Uchiha, like my cousin here." Sasuke was visibly stunned at her confession, but the men weren't preceptive enough to notice his reaction.

"Naw," the man bemoaned. "I've never seen a blonde or brunette Uchiha before."

She arched an quizzical eyebrow, "exactly how may Uchiha have you seen?"

"Uh..."

"Fine," she said impatiently. "How about this?" The man jumped back as her golden Sharingan formed.

"No, Sharingan are red."

"Oh they are? You mean like this?" She blinked and her Sharingan changed to a deep red.

"Yeah, like that, but now I know your lying."

"Believe what you will," she said absently.

"Though, that was a cute trick. Are you here for work?"

"Yes, we heard that you were hiring many, many, people."

"You can't be completely worthless if you know how to do that shit. Bring your cousin and go straight down the hall until it branches off. Take a left, and the commander should be around that area."

The burly men went outside as Riba and Sasuke proceeded into the labyrinth. Sasuke walked close and laid his hand on her lower back as if guiding her, "you told them that we're Uchiha? You don't think that might tip Madara off?" He whispered.

She grinned, "technically, we're Uchiha who are pretending to be common thugs who are pretending to be Uchiha."

"I am so aroused by you right now."

"I provide only the very best lessons for my dear apprentice."

They veered left at the branching point. A lone man quickly stepped out of the shadows, and Riba pretended to almost run into him, deception is all in the details.

"Are you the new people?" the lean man asked in a low voice.

"Yes," Riba said with a smile. "I'm Ria and this is my lover Kachi. We were off on a sordid tryst and heard that an elite shinobi was recruiting."

"Lovers? My man at the entrance told me that you were cousins."

"Did he now?"

"Well, that's what I though I heard," he held up a decrepit looking radio.

"How quaint."

"Here, you'll need on of these." He reached into the sack on his belt and tossed her and even worse looking radio. She caught it slowly, refusing to be tricked into betraying her unnatural speed. He scoffed, "walk around as you wish, just come if I call and fight who I tell you to."

"Yes sir," she said with a smile and a wave as they continued deeper into the labyrinth. Once they were out of earshot, she tossed the radio into the shadow of the nearest wall, and closed her eyes while Sasuke kept a lookout.

"Will you be able to tell Kakashi and Genma's chakra apart from everyone else's?" he asked.

"Kakashi has white chakra buried deep within his body, that's what I'm looking for now." She was silent for a few minutes, focusing her Hyuuga senses, "they're below us, it looks like there are five people in the room."

The ran down the hall until they found a staircase. The hallways seemed to get darker the deeper they went.

"They must be in the main operation room. I can lead the way from here," Sasuke whispered.

"Kakashi's chakra is weak. Madara must have drugged him."

"Will that be a problem?"

"No, I figured that this would happen. Shinobi like Kakashi and Genma are difficult to imprison. He probably required them to drink it as a condition of the trade."

"How do you know?"

"It's what I would have done."

They rounded a corner and stealthily began to walk towards the operation room. "Stop," Sasuke whispered as he laid a heavy hand on her shoulder, "I think Orochimaru is in there."

"Why?" She asked, clearly shocked.

"Why is Orochimaru in Orochimaru's base? Do you really have to ask that?"

"Don't start with me, you know what I meant. Why is he alive?"

"Remember when you sent me after Kabuto, back before the Fourth Shinobi World War?"

"You killed Kabuto, and that somehow brought back Orochimaru?"

"More like, I didn't kill Kabuto and used the parts of Orochimaru's body that Kabuto had absorbed to bring back Orochimaru. Technically, Orochimaru never died, he was inside of Kabuto the whole time."

"Why didn't you tell me this before now?!" She hissed.

"It was before I died. Orochimaru hasn't shown up since I was resurrected, so I assumed that it wasn't an issue."

"You and I are going to have a long talk about what is considered an issue."

"Will they be a problem?"

"Not if we stick to our training. Stand against the wall and don't step in front of the door. There are three on the left and two against the back wall."

...

Kakashi could feel is brain swelling. Liquid was filling his lungs, making him strain with each breath. The only solace he had as he sat slouched on the cold floor, was that he had the opportunity to watch Kabuto implant poisoned lungs into Madara's maimed chest. Orochimaru had checked the tissue so carefully, and assured Madara so completely, that they proceeded with the transplant as if they had won a victory over gullible Konoha.

Kabuto had just sown up Madara's chest. Tsunade's healing chakra was flowing through his body and the ragged sound of his breathing had been replaced by a deep rhythmic calm. The man had even smiled and laughed as he stared at Kabuto's masterfully applied stitches.

_Laugh it up. Even if you escape us, you can't escape your own body, _Kakashi thought_. _He would have applauded their foolish arrogance if he had use of his hands.

He could feel Riba coming for them, standing in the doorway. He watched her draw her sword and wait in silence as Kabuto, Orochimaru, and a dazed Madara slowly looked over at her. Orochimaru and Kabuto stepped around the operating table and walked into the center of the room, standing in front of Kakashi and Genma. Their message was clear, she would have to go through them.

Her disguise faded and red streaks glided through her hair. The gold of her irises flooded in, accompanied by her Mangekyou Sharingan. Chakra filled her body, bringing forth the sea of curly spiked tattoos on her arms and shoulders. "Kabuto," she said playfully, "you sniveling little defector. We let you come back to your home country, train you at our best academy, and you throw it all away to run off with this woman," she said as she pointed at Orochimaru.

"My Sovereign, the great five-tailed dark dragon," Kabuto hissed. Green chakra surrounded his hands, forming knife-like blades, "who summoned you?"

Riba took a step back into the hallway. Kakashi grunted, shifting on the cold floor. Before he could make it to his feet, he saw Genma rise with shaky footsteps and stumble forward. "Stop," was on the tip of his tongue, but his clouded mind couldn't form the words. Genma stepped between Riba and Kabuto, and Riba darted with blinding speed, pushing Genma to the ground hard.

Her eyes closed, shaken with disappointment. Kakashi could see her exhale as if it was her last breath. The immortal five-tailed beast had made a very human mistake.

Madara's eyes were fixed on her the second she stepped into his field of vision. His Sharingan tightened as his space-time Jutsu enveloped her. The space around her seemed to ripple as she was pulled away with Kabuto and Orochimaru. In seconds they were gone, and he and Genma were left alone and drugged in the center of an enemy compound. He couldn't believe it, he hadn't seen her make a mistake since she was thirteen years old, she couldn't afford to.

Sasuke ran into the room and lifted Genma up by the collar, holding him high enough so that his toes barely scrapped across the ground. There was a visceral look in Sasuke's eyes, a blood deep rage that shown through his Mangekyou Sharingan and was focused on Genma's panic as if he was feeding off of it.

"You stupid, low class, shit," Sasuke growled, shaking with rage. "She was luring them into the hallway, away from Madara. What the fuck did you think you were doing? Saving her? You can't even conceive of the power that she wields," his voice ragged and simmering.

"Put him down," Kakashi said calmly as he stumbled towards them.

Sasuke grinned ominously, his eyes never leaving Genma, "don't make he mistake of thinking that I answer to you. Riba was the only reason that I didn't gut you on sight."

"Don't kill Genma over Riba's mistake."

"Then he shouldn't have gotten in her way. She sacrificed herself to to save who? Him? This worthless Konoha human?" His hands tightened over Genma's collar bone, making him grunt repeatedly at the sharp stabbing waves of pain.

"No," Kakashi said. "She could have ducked below Madara's field of vision, and kicked Genma's legs out from under him. It was her fault Sasuke, so put Gemna down."

"She shouldn't have even been here. Konoha bring the Uchiha nothing but pain."

"Fine!" Kakashi shouted. "That's what this is about!? I'm sorry that your clan is dead. I'm sorry that they wanted to overthrow Konoha, and I'm sorry that the elders sent Itachi to kill them all. I'm sorry that the rest of us did nothing. It's my fault, and Konoha's, and the Uchiha's, but you know who's fault it isn't? Riba's. So put Genma down and let's find a way to rescue the only innocent Uchiha left."

"Don't patronize me! You have no idea what I am, what was done to me, what they saved me from." He began to shake Genma violently.

"You may be psychotic Sasuke, but you seem to genuinely love her. So for once, we understand each other. She has been taken by three S-rank criminals, one who is going to be very angry once he realizes that she aided in poisoning him. Help me help her."

"Oh, I'm going to help her, but it won't be with you, and certainly not with him." Sasuke dropped Genma to the ground and swiftly walked out the door. His pace quickened, he was about to round the corner and disappear into the labyrinth.

"Uchiha Uindo Sasuke!" Kakashi called after him, "there's another way."


	9. Diversion Master

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

Riba paced back and forth in the tiny cell, the same one that Madara had imprisoned her in after Itachi died. She had never quite figured out how to escape the seals that lined the bars and walls, and the knowledge that her own failing had brought her back to them was enough to drive her mad.

She sat down on the grimy cot and leaned against the wall. The last time she had been there, Sasuke had been roaming the halls. Madara hand switched Sasuke's eyes for Itachi's, and Sasuke had switched his old eyes for hers. On that very cot, Sasuke had preformed the transplant, giving her the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan.

Despite Sasuke's heinous reputation, his clan loyalty was beyond reproach. He was one of the few people that Riba trusted entirely. Their bloodline bond was unbreakable.

"You have a history behind these bars, from what I hear..."

The sudden sound made Riba's nerves peak. Someone was in the shadows.

"Do you hate me?" The man asked as he stepped into the light and lazily draped his forearms through the bars. He leaning his head on their cold surface, "even after I repaired your eyes at the Northern Base?"

She walked over and leaned her back against the bars, staring sideways at him, "it's not hate, I could never hate you." She swept a few strands of gray hair away from his face. His appearance was so Uindo, those traits had never left him.

"Is there a hidden 'but' in that statement?" He asked wisely.

"But, if you come after the home of the Hyuuga, I will kill you. If you come after my apprentice, I will kill you, have you resurrected, and kill you again. And if you come after Uindo, I will find a punishment worse than death to subject you to for the rest of my life, which could be a very long time."

"Eventually Orochimaru will come for Sasuke's body, and if you try to kill him, I'll kill you."

"Good, then we have an understanding. I'm glad we've work that out."

"As am I. And since Orochimaru and I are running the show while Madara is in recovery, I have a gesture of good will for you, something to keep you entertained."

"So that I spend less of my time figuring out how to break out of here?"

"Exactly," Kabuto said with a smile. "We found him wondering around the territory alone, not a wise move. He's a pretty weak shinobi, no special traits to speak of, so I figured that I might as well throw him to the dragon."

Kabuto whistled loudly and two guards dragged a man into the room. A hood covered his head and his hands were bound. Kabuto deactivated the seals and tossed the man into the cell, resetting them before he had even hit the ground.

"What am I supposed to do with him?" She asked.

"Torture him, kill him, whatever it is that beasts do. Frankly, I don't care. However, I would like his body after you're finished with it." He waved as he walked away, disappearing into the hallway.

Riba ripped off the hood, "oh god Genma. What the hell are you doing here?"

He groaned as she untied his hands, "from what I hear, it's not a good idea to walk around the Rogue Territory alone."

"Where are Kakashi and Saskue?"

"That's a good question."

"They left you?"

"Don't tell me you're surprised. The elite prodigies apparently don't want to sully themselves by working with low bred shinobi like me." He stood up and dusted himself off, "where are we?"

"The basement of the former Akatsuki headquarters."

"Can you use your Genjutsu to contact Sasuke and tell him that? If they rescue you, they rescue me by default."

"No, I'm afraid that Madara designed these seals specifically to block my chakra. I was never able to figure out how to escape."

"So there's no way for you to break us out?"

"The fact that they didn't take my sword should show the confidence they have in the seals."

He sat down on the bed and patted the spot next to him, "are we alone?"

"No," she said as she sat down. "There are guards in the hallway, hidden in the shadows."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, I don't need light to see chakra. Besides, I'm sure if you call them they'll come over. They're just dumb brutes that Madara picked up from around the territory." She paused, "I'm sorry that I got us trapped in here. I was foolish of me to jump in front of Madara's line of sight."

"Don't be sorry. You made a small mistake in response to my huge one. I don't know what I was thinking, maybe it was the drugs."

Genma was missing his senbon. He didn't mention it, but Riba knew that the loss was probably grating on him. She opened her mouth and slid a senbon from a cannel in her pallet onto her tongue and handed it to him.

"Oh thank god," he said as he put it between his lips. "I don't think I would have lasted until Kakashi and Sasuke save us without this."

"So they're coming then?"

"Well, I assume so. They're your lovers after all."

"Yes, but this is a black-ops mission. They're not supposed to save us."

"You know they will. At least one of your lovers will come. Who are they? Kakashi, Neji, Sasuke..."

"...Itachi, though he died a long time ago, so I don't think he'll be coming."

"Itachi? I knew it! I said that you two were together, but no one believed me."

"I'm a sucker for the handsome bad boys," she teased.

"The handsome, narcissistic, selfish, bad boys you mean."

"Yeah well, politics being what it is, they're my responsibility regardless of their personalities."

"Kakashi isn't."

"He's the exception."

Gemna leaned back against the wall, making himself comfortable, "have you ever considered finding a man whose, you know, more normal?"

"Normal?"

"You know, someone whose not prestigious."

"Genma, I'm a five-tailed dragon. I takes an unusual person to be attracted to that."

"Unusual isn't necessary the same as prestigious."

"Why are we talking about this?"

"Curiosity? Did you have something else you wanted to do while we waste away in this cell?"

"Not especially."

He reached over and gently twirled a few strands of her hair between his fingers.

"Genma?"

"Does this bother you?" He asked warmly.

"Why are you acting so strange all of a sudden?" She asked coldly.

He leaned close and gently bushed his lips against her neck, too light to be a kiss, and whispered against her skin, "you're single, I'm single, and we have this lovely cave-cell thing all to ourselves..."

She pulled away. In all the years that she had know him, he had never once come on to her, not seriously at least. It wasn't a "matter of time" situation either, they had the chance multiple times, so why the sudden interest?

His hand moved across her chest and drifted to the other side of her neck, pulling her back to his lips, "you're not worried what Kakashi will think are you? He's slept with every pretty women in Konoha, so he has no room to judge."

Normally, Genma was the grinning jackal, out for whatever attractive pray he could devour. She expected that of him, but that wasn't what she was getting. His attitude had softened and his touches were gentle.

"You smell sweet. I wonder if you _taste_ like that," he said.

"Genma, we..."

"Have you ever thought about this?" he asked, cutting her off.

"About what?"

"About us," he rested his hand on her hip, "I have, many times."

"Passingly."

He was extremely handsome, he had to be to get away with his shameless barmaid plundering. Maybe she was entitled to a bit of mindless entertainment, and besides, she was a bit envious of Kakashi's libertine lifestyle. His subtle forest-like scent and rugged mannerisms were fueling her instinct to submit. He was attractive, but wasn't pretty. His features were hard and defined, more of a bar fighter than a highly stylized prodigy. Admittedly, he was the complete opposite of any of her past men, a quality that was making her dangerously curious.

Sensing her apprehension, he put his senbon behind his ear. His chestnut eyes held a sensual delicacy that relaxed her, and his honest smiled made her feel secure. She wondered if used that expression with all the ladies.

He leaned in close enough to brush his lips against hers and whispered, "come on honey."

She instantly recognized Kakashi's words. The realization that his seduction was part of a larger plan was all the rational she needed. She snaked her arms under his vest. He gave her a grin and wink full of mischief, "don't worry, I'll treat you well."

Her mouth fell slightly open as he sucked invitingly on her bottom lip. He took the invitation and kissed her deeply, curling his tongue around hers and moving in slow practiced sweeps. Leaving no doubt that he was truly a master of oral fixation.

Moments were aching past, her breasts were tightening under her shirt and her body was begging for him. Normally at this point she would get persistent, but this was his game and he was calling the shots. He ran his tongue along the senbon canals on the roof of her mouth, his movements more curious than sensual. "That's the most erotic thing I've ever felt," he said breathlessly against her lips in a honest voice that made her melt.

The next kiss was heavy and deep, he planted a hand on the wall next to her head and groaned. This time though, it wasn't empty. His tongue was curled around something that he slipped into her mouth. It was small and hard, like a pill.

He looked at her blankly as he parted her knees and drifted to the ground. He wasn't giving any hints, and she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. Swallow it? Bite it? Hold it until they needed it for something? She wasn't even sure what it was.

Madara's men were watching from the shadows. She could see their chakra moving forward just far enough to get a better look without being seen. Two more men had joined them since she had last looked, apparently they were inviting their buddies to watch the show.

Genma's hands were sliding down her hips, pulling off her pants. She was instantly uncomfortable with being spread out in front of the leering thugs. This wasn't like the Geisha missions with the Ferocious Five, she had been in control then, knowing full well the shape of the mission she was preforming. The unknown was killing her, she had no idea how she should play this, and felt entirely too vulnerable.

An electric jolt coursed through her body as his tongue struck the sensitive skin between her legs, but she couldn't peel her eyes off the spectators. She could see diffuse clouds of chakra where they stood, perfectly still, gawking at her body as Genma slid his wet tongue over her swollen skin, gently sucking.

"Riba," he said in a firm voice that instantly drew her attention to him, "watch me."

He lifted her leg over his shoulder and pulled her forward. Her back slid down the cold stone wall and she lost sight of the thugs, her vision now wholly focused on Genma's practiced movements. Each press of his lips and slide of his tongue made her tremble. She leaned in closer, the foreignness slipping away as he formed a rhythm and she concentrated on the sensations. Just enough pressure to pleasure but not enough to overwhelm the sensitive nerves. She watched him devour her with a deep concentrated expression, full of aroused passion.

Her hand drifted to his head, his hair was soft and his skin was warm. His tongue fluttered against her, he obviously liked his scalp rubbed. His rhythm was blending together in her mind and she was breathing heavy. He open mouth grinned, and her mind wandered as it captivated her. He had imagined this, by his own admission, and fantasized about her submitting to his allure. He quickened, pressing harder, one more stroke of his tongue-tip was all she needed.

Her body blazed and smoldered as she arched against him. His name dragged from her lips between ragged moans. He blew a cold breath against her swollen skin and she gasped from the shivering sensation, inadvertently sucking the pill down her throat.

Oh yeah, the pill. She had forgotten about that. Silently thankful that it had gone into her stomach instead of down her windpipe. She tried to regain concentration. Was she supposed to swallow it? She looked down a Genma, who was staring blankly at her pale thigh and panting. He wasn't with her right now, he would be no help.

Her fingers were warm, at first she though it was from the pleasure, but as the feeling spread through her nerves she connected the logic and understood. Her cold chakra was receding into her core. Hadn't Kakashi and Genma been testing a drug like that? But what was the point in giving it to her? The cell was all bars and stone, so even if her chakra couldn't be detected she was still in plain sight. How do you hide in an open room, and why would you?

She regained control of herself the second she figured it out, and disappeared. Genma shook himself straight and stood up in feigned shock. The voyeuristic guards ran over to the cell shouting profanities. The game was on and Genma was back in action. He looked through the bars to a distant place on the wall, and they turned to follow his line of sight.

That was the cue she needed, the minute they all turned she slid under the cot. They were completely fooled by her invisibility Jutsu. She just had to remain perfectly still or her movements would create visible distortions.

Madara ran down the stairs and slammed his hand on the nearest bar. The seals around the cell began to melt and flow has he recovered the chakra they held. He walked into the cell as if the bars were made of water, and looked pointedly at Genma through his orange swirled mask, "where did she go?"

"I don't know. She just disappeared."

"Don't lie, you aren't good at it," he said threateningly.

"He's right boss! We all saw it," a man from the crowd called out.

Madara slowly surveyed the room. He jolted to the ground and looked under the cot. Riba held her breath and tried to remain still. She wasn't sure if he was looking at her or through her. He lingered for a minute, then stood. Riba took a long awaited breath.

"I can smell her..."

"Oh I bet you can," Genma purred.

Madara sniffed the air, absorbing the salty-sweet scent, and looked at Genma in disgust. Genma just smiled and took her senbon from behind his ear and laid it on his lower lip.

"How low she has fallen," Madara said as he walked back through the bars. "What are you worthless rats waiting for? Search the complex in case she's still here!"

The men scuttled off with Madara following slowly behind. Kabuto stopped him at the foot of the stairs, "she's gone? I though you said that she couldn't pass through the bars!"

"She was always a smart one, her and Itachi. It doesn't matter. She wasn't the prize, just a bonus."

Kabuto and Madara left, and Riba quickly climbed out and dispelled her Jutsu.

"Well played," Genma teased.

"Was that all part of the plan?" She asked pointedly.

"What part?"

"The part where I was moaning your name."

"Well..." he said in a guilty voice. "I was supposed to get you to take the pill and go invisible in front of an audience, the rest was up to me."

"I'm sure that Kakashi and Sasuke will love to hear about your harrowing adventures in my pants."

"Sure, you can tell them all about it someday, like when I'm on my death bed."

"How did you know that Madara would remove the seals?"

"Apparently all Uchiha think I'm a weak, bloodline-less, animal, so why would they bother to seal me in?"

"Well done. Now what?"

"Hey, my job was just to get the seals removed. The escape is all on you."

She paused, "Where are Kakashi and Sasuke?"

"Just over the Konoha border. We figured that Madara and Orochimaru would expect them to come after you, so we tried to make it look like they were abandoning you instead."

"Well, trying to fight our way out of here would be unwise. Maybe I can teleport us to them. I keep some of my chakra inside of Sasuke so I can use my Genjutsu to contact him. Basically, he's a mobile location tag."

"I thought it was really difficult for you to teleport with another person."

"It is," she put her arms around his wast and held him close. "Just stay very, very, still."

Her chakra leaked into his body, chilling him to the bone. He shivered against her as they disappeared.


	10. Pot Calling the Kettle

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

It was another lazy day in Konoha. Nothing remarkable was happening anywhere, which was a welcome relief to Kakashi after the stressful black-ops mission. Two months had passed since he had returned to the village, and in all that time, Tsunade had said nothing that even hinted at a mission debriefing. He secretly hoped that her continued silence indicated that the matter would be put to rest forever.

He walked into the Yamanaka flower shop where Ino lazed on the counter.

"Kakashi! Oh my god! Why are _you_ here?" She asked excitedly.

"Um, for flowers?" He looked around the small shop. Amphora full of flowers covered almost every surface and the intensity of the combined scents was overpowering.

"For that women? The one from _Golden Eyes_? You guys are finally together?"

"Yeah...so, about the flowers," Kakashi said, trying to end the gossip mongering.

"What can I get for you, lover boy?"

"What do you recommend?"

"For what occasion? A date?"

"Yes."

"How about roses?"

"No, seems too cliché. Besides, I want something a bit more unique." He looked around the shop. Everything looked so dainty, a trait he typically found unattractive. He eyed an amphora behind the desk that was filled with ornate flowers, seemingly the only bold species in stock. He pointed lazily, "what are those?

"Tiger lilies."

The petals were long and curved, and the mixture of red-orange and yellow felt familiar, "I'd like one of those."

"Just one?"

"What's wrong with one?"

"It will make you look cheap."

"Okay, a dozen then."

"Not a dozen, that'll make it look like you're trying too hard."

"What's the correct answer here?" He ask irritably.

"Six should be good," she pulled out some decorative paper began to wrap the flowers. "Are you sure that she's back? I thought she was busy assassinating with the Ferocious Five."

"They got back yesterday."

"Ah, well that's good. Sakura was thrilled to have her back on the team."

"How's she handling having Sasuke travel with them?" Kakashi asked.

"Sasuke hasn't had influence over her since she was a teenager, and Kurenai, Anko, and Shian couldn't care less. From what I hear, they're being pretty hard on him."

"Good," he muttered. The Ferocious Five were known for being rough with men, a necessity given the type of missions they handled, so Sasuke's elitism would get him nowhere. Secretly Kakashi hoped that they were making him suffer.

He payed Ino and headed towards the Uchiha compound. As the last remaining Uchiha, Riba and Sasuke had inherited all the former Uchiha holdings. They had moved into the least age-damaged mansion in the compound. The house was plain yet classy, the stone walls on the exterior were framed by a lovely wooden porch with sliding doors in the style of a tradition tea house.

_They cleaned the building up pretty well_, he thought as he knocked on the newly varnished door and waited.

Eventually Riba answered. Her wide-collared shirt and sword suggested that maybe there was a bit of miscommunication about the day's activities.

"Nice um...black cloths," Riba said.

"Well, I didn't want to show up in my Jounin uniform."

"Why not?"

"Because people usually don't wear shinobi uniforms on dates?"

"Oh! See, when you said you wanted to take me out after my mission, I thought you meant to train."

"I said date, not spar_,_" he emphasized.

"_Date_ has meant _spar_ for the entire time we've known each other."

"Point taken."

"What's that in your hand?"

"I brought you these to show my affection, I guess," he held up the bouquet, quite pleased with himself.

She questioningly took the flowers, "didn't you say that you hated the idea of flowers and chocolate and tradition dating rules? I somehow remember the words _worthless_ and _pathetic_ being thrown around."

"Sounds like something I would say. If you don't want the flowers, I can always take them back."

"No, no," she retorted. "I think they're very thoughtful. I just don't understand why you brought them."

"I want to try properly taking a woman out for once in my life. Have that experience. If we end up being bored to tears then we can always leave early and spar for a few hours."

Sasuke suddenly appeared behind her, wearing lose sweat pants and running a towel through his wet hair. "Really Kakashi?" He mocked.

Riba sighed, "Sasuke, could you please put these flowers somewhere?"

"In the trash?"

"In a vase or something," she said as she shoved the bouquet into his hand. "I need to change, it should only take a second. " She disappeared into the house as Kakashi stepped into the foyer.

Sasuke closed the door behind him, "you know that you'll never replace Itachi right?"

"Don't start. I don't want to get blood on this outfit."

Riba emerged wearing the same red corseted dress that she always wore, "shall we?"

...

The restaurant was lavishly decorated and frequented by many of Konoha's wealthier citizens. Kakashi instantly felt underdressed, and Riba's outfit didn't exactly scream "refined."

They were seated at a small table in the back. It would have felt romantic had everyone not been staring at them. The waiter came over with a bottle of the house wine, "compliments of the owner, we're sorry for your loss." He opened the bottle and filled their glasses before disappearing into the kitchen.

"Sorry for our loss?" Riba leaned across the table and took a closer look at Kakashi's entirely blank ensemble, "oh no Kakashi, you didn't..."

"In my defense, it's the only non-mission outfit I have."

"Even your vest would have been better than wearing your funeral blacks on a date! When was the last time you wore those? The Sandaime's funeral?" She shook her head disgustedly.

"That might actually be the case. Unfortunately, I don't have a wardrobe left over from the Akatsuki to dive into every time I want to go out."

She took a drink of the wine, not wanting to let it go to waste, "why must you always give me a hard time about this dress? What has it ever do to you?"

"I'm not going to answer that in public..."

"Seriously Kakashi."

"It's just that you always wear that specific dress, regardless of the occasion. Aren't you outrageously wealthy? Shouldn't you have an overpriced warehouse full of dresses somewhere?"

"Actually I do, but the Sovereign's wardrobe is regal attire. I would look overdressed anywhere outside of Uindo."

"Oh yeah, because that dress makes you blend right in." His eyes traveled unrepentantly over her neck and chest, "I'm dying to know where you even got something like that."

"It previously belonged to a prostitute."

"Previously belonged to a prostitute?" He asked suspiciously.

"She was dead."

"You took the dresses off of a dead hooker?!" His eyes widened.

"I didn't, Kisame did."

"Did he kill her for the dress, or just take it off of an already dead person's body?"

"That's a good question. I never asked."

His brow furrowed, giving her the same disappointed look he usually reserved for unruly Genin.

"It was washed before I wore it...I think" she teased, immune to his attempts at condescension.

"That's not the point." He tied to remain serious, but Riba's feline grin broke his stone cold will and made him smirk, and once his lips began to curl he couldn't keep them from evolving into a smile. They were quite a pair, funeral blacks and a delicious red dress fit for only the finest of hookers. "You know, as fun as this may be, we should probably stick to training and sparing from now on," he said, realizing that maybe traditional dating really wasn't for him.

His attention was suddenly diverted by the presence of chakra, an odd feeling inside a restaurant frequented almost exclusively by civilians. He looked around the room an saw two ANBU wading through the tables, and four more waiting beside the maitre d' at the door.

Riba was watching them as well, her Hyuuga senses alerting her to their presence. The men came to the table and motioned for Riba and Kakashi to follow. Riba instantly teleported a stack of Konoha bills onto the table, enough to pay for every meal in the room, and followed Kakashi and the ANBU out of the restaurant.

"Where are we going?" Riba asked suspiciously.

The ANBU said nothing as they escorted them down the street. Kakashi laid a comforting hand on the small of her back, "we probably have an urgent mission request from the Hokage. Nothing we haven't dealt with a million times before. There's no need to worry."

"My intuition disagrees."

They were lead past both the ANBU headquarters and Hokage tower. The long thin heels on Riba's shoes weren't made for comfort, and despite her best efforts, she was beginning to limp. Sensing her silent pain, Kakashi swiftly lifted her up into his arms.

She struggle slightly in surprise, but eventually settled, wrapping her arms around his neck and molding herself against his chest. It was strange, he had always associated her with being strong and fearless, yet she seemed so small in his arms. It was if her personality added stature that disappeared when he held her. She felt so human.

"Where are they taking us?" She whispered.

Kakashi hesitated, he knew exactly where they were being taken but didn't know why. They were approaching the base of Hokage Mountain, under which lay Konoha Maximum Security Penitentiary.

The ANBU stopped at the entrance to the prison. "We'll be taking her," one said, his voice muffled by his mask.

"Why am I here?" Riba asked as Kakashi set her down.

"There is someone who wishes to speak with you," the man replied.

"I've heard that one before, and I didn't believe it then either." Her eyes narrowed, "and where will you be taking Kakashi?"

"That's none of your concern, now go," the man ordered.

Riba stood defiantly still. Kakashi could feel her mood shift and her energy building. He leaned near her ear and whispered, "It's okay, go with them."

Her breath was heavy, "you're wrong Kakashi."

"Go," he said firmly.

She went silently, without argument, following his orders. One led her inside while the other five took him along the mountain's base. They were at the far corner of the city, past the training grounds and away from anywhere that the citizenry would ever bother to come.

The farther away from her he went, the more he could feel it. His instincts heightened and his gut twisted, a blood-deep reaction honed from years of facing death head on. His mind was surprised but his body wasn't. There was a cushion for him to kneel on and a sword at the ready, this was his execution.

He should have listened to her.

They pushed him towards a large round seal on the ground. The moment he stepped inside he would be trapped, with nothing but the executioner and his fate. He wondered why, but knew that there would be no answer if he asked. Would it be more noble to fight or submit? His life had been tainted by gruesome missions and unrecoverable sins, maybe they had good reason to put him to death.

He could see the blood drip out of their eyes as they were shoved onto the seal, blinded and dazed by her Genjutsu. She was so fast. Her hand grabbed his and pulled, and they ran into the training grounds and hid.

Kakashi's voice was low and cold, "I made a mistake."

"You're only human. I wish I could use that excuse."

"I almost stepped inside of the seal, as if I deserved it."

"You wouldn't have this problem if you would just stop acting like a damn martyr all the time."

"Well, I'm only human," he said lightly.

"I saw Tsunade inside a cell, that's when I ran. I think this may be about the black-ops mission."

"That means they'll be after Genma next, if they haven't gotten to him already. We need to get him."

"No, you need to run. I'll get him."

"I..."

"Don't make another mistake. I can teleport, dissolve, and am way too fast for anyone in this village to catch me."

"Okay," he said reluctantly. "There's a clearing in the woods outside of Konoha. I'll meet you guys there and we can decide what to do next."

...

She whisked through the key hole in Genma's door and materialized in his living room. The decor was navy and forest green, and oak furniture gave the room a distinctly masculine feel.

"I wondered if you'd ever come here." He walked in from the bedroom with a shirt in his hand, wondering if he should bother putting it on, or if he would just be taking it off again very soon. He stood with his arm above his head, leaning against the door frame.

"That's not why I came."

"Then why are you in my apartment wearing that dress?" He pulled the senbon from his mouth and pointed it at her feet, raising it up her body with a slow flick of his wrist.

"It's a long story."

"I have time."

"No you don't."

"Are you saying that we need to do this quickly?"

She stared blankly at him, her eyes morphing.

"Riba, I'm experienced enough to be frightened by that. Even coming from you," he said as he stared uncomfortably into her Sharingan.

"Open your curtains."

Genma stepped behind his couch and slid the fabric back, his eyes never leaving her. He turned slowly and came eye to eye with two ANBU, separated only by a thin pane of glass. "Oh shit."

"It's okay, they're trapped in my Genjutsu. They think they're capturing you right now."

"What's the plan?"

"There isn't one. Kakashi is waiting in a clearing in the woods outside the city. We'll figure out what to do once we're all safe."

He threw on his shirt and looked at her expectingly, "let's go."

"I can't."

"Now isn't the time to be cryptic."

"I won't leave without my apprentice. I'll see you in the clearing," she said as she dissolved.

...

Sasuke sat at the kitchen table, a half eaten apple in hand, "well that ended quickly, Kakashi is such a fuck up."

"Sasuke, emergency!" She said as she slithered out of her dress and teleported it away.

He stood abruptly, "your gear is in our room." His Uindo shackle tattoos filled with chakra and became visible on the small amount of skin not covered by his long ANBU gloves.

She was dressed and downstairs in minutes, strapping her sword to her back as she ran, "we're leaving, are you ready?"

"Always," he said smoothly.

She looked around, "...are those my flowers inside of that empty milk carton?"

...

Riba and Sasuke recombined beside Genma and Kakashi in the clearing. It was sunny and the wind was warm. A perfect day to explore the Fire Country, and idea that they hoped no one in the city had decided to act upon.

"Kakashi told me everything," Genma said before Riba and Sasuke even had a chance to reorient themselves. "I can't believe that Naruto would sentience us to death."

"I agree," Riba said. "There has to be more, but this isn't the time to figure it out. We need to leave." She nodded at Sasuke, "summon Jas."

Before Genma and Kakashi could question them, Riba and Sasuke had used their swords to draw blood and summon their giant warbirds. Sasuke's hawk Jas, and Riba's falcon Danal, appeared before them. They were covered in armor and draped in long silk banners that bore Riba's symbol: the Uchiha fan surrounded by thin lines that represented gusts of wind.

"Come on, we need to leave before the ANBU find us," she said as Danal lowered his wing as a ramp for her to board him.

"We can't," Kakashi insisted. "The minute we cross the Konoha border we become missing-nin."

"Would you rather be a missing-nin, or be dead?" She replied harshly. "Decide fast, because I'm not about to complete my _prisons of the world _collection by being thrown into the depths of Konoha Maximum Security."

"We can investigate this without defecting," Kakashi forced. He could feel the lack of logic there and knew it meant that he had little to cling to.

"You're considered to be a genius, so please regale me with your masterful plan of how to fix this while the whole of Konoha is hunting you," she challenged.

His mind grasped at arguments but came up empty. She was right, and he was about to become a missing-nin.


	11. Best Gutter in Town

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

The mountaintop city of Uindo never changed. It wasn't surprising, a civilization as old as theirs was bound to have perfected their aesthetic and created a tradition around it. Hundreds of birds flew swiftly through the sky around the gray-toned buildings. Guards standing on turrets stationed on the surrounding mountains waved happily at Riba and Sasuke as they flew towards the High Council Building in Uindo's main peak.

Danal and Jas expertly landed on two large poles that jetted out of an ornate balcony. Sasuke laughed as Genma practically fell off of Jas, happy to finally be on solid ground. Riba and Kakashi leapt off of Danal and helped him to his feet.

The long glass door slid open and Neji emerged to greet them. He completely ignored Kakashi and Genma and gave Riba a tight hug and an intimate kiss. His black robes were trimmed in forest green, and tailored to be of simple design. The fabric itself was ornate, covered with a subtle yet complex pattern. His regal appearance suited his role as Riba representative. As much as Kakashi wanted to appear unimpressed, his eyes were continuously drawn to the Hyuuga's bare forehead. There wasn't a scar or scratch on the perfectly smooth skin. Uindo's medics had certainly done a fine job of removing the seal.

Neji was noticeably different, almost inhumanly so. His hair had lighted to a chestnut brown, and his pearl eyes had been bleached so white that his irises were no longer visible against the white of his eyeballs. His skin was radiantly smooth and pale, a trait Kakashi instantly associated with Riba. It was obvious that he had been altered to a degree that was apparent, yet not readily identifiable. In an abstract way, Neji kind of looked like her. She had obviously put a great deal of herself into him, and that was enough to make Kakashi want to throw him off the balcony.

Sasuke and Neji gripped each other's forearm in a strange brotherly handshake, and grinned knowingly as if having a silent conversion. Kakashi had never seen an Uchiha and a Hyuuga get along, ever. Maybe missing-nin stuck together regardless of bloodline.

"I'm glad to have you back in our private chambers," Neji said to Riba, making no effort to hide the undertone.

"I wish it was under more pleasurable circumstances. We have an issue."

"I know, the messenger birds proceeded you. I started getting reports from our spies in Konoha about an hour ago."

"Did they have any pertinent information?"

"No, it was a jumbled mess of speculation and assumptions. The only common factor was that Kakashi and Genma are considered to have gone rogue."

"Kakashi," Sasuke said, enunciating each syllable, "the great Copy-ninja has finally been washed off the streets of Konoha and drained down into the gutter with the rest of us."

"Now is not the time to pick a fight," Riba said curtly.

"Fight? Why would I want a fight? He's one of us now. Abandoned by his own country and forced to become a missing-nin. I'd be upset if it wasn't so hilarious."

"Neji, is there anything that Sasuke can help you with?"

"I'm sure we can find something to entertain us," Neji replied as he nodded to Sasuke and the pair went inside, smirking at the irony of Kakashi and Genma's situation.

Kakashi watched them through the sliding glass door. They were relaxed, and smiled at each other like old friends. Neji pointed at the sword on Sasuke's hip and Sasuke said something that made them both laugh. To them, being missing-nin was nothing worth getting excited over.

People like Riba, Sasuke, and Neji knew how to be criminals. They knew the rules. Riba could walk up to any two-bit thug, grin feline, and seduce him into giving his life for her. Kakashi knew that he couldn't play the game like that, not like her. The most he knew about criminals was how to track and kill them. He and Genma would be dead in a week if left to fend for themselves in the underworld. Too many people wanted them dead and they had no idea how to earn the street-credit necessary to join their ranks.

Riba crossed her arms over her chest, "I think we need to figure out a way to get you guys back on good terms with Konoha."

"Good terms?" Genma said frustratedly, "I think the only way they'll want us back is from the neck up on a silver platter."

"They don't take back missing-nin," Kakashi said sternly.

"Lets not be dramatic. Anything that is politically motivated is subject to negotiation. If they never took back missing-nin, how do you explain Sasuke's induction into the ANBU?"

Kakashi paused, "I'm still not sure how you arranged that."

"Simply by not treating the law as an absolute. It's nothing more than a standard that's enforced by people, and people can be manipulated."

Her voice was even and nonchalant in a way that was unsettling to Kakashi. She spoke as if bypassing the law was common practice. "Okay, obviously you're good at being bad. I'm currently in no position to lecture you on the merits of those skills," Kakashi sounded like someone admitting defeat, a mixture of relief and shame in his voice.

"Whatever," Genma smirked, "keep being a good bad girl, I like that."

Riba laughed, "it's settled then. Lets have some tea."

"Tea?" Kakashi said. "Is that some type of street slang?"

"Yeah, it's code for _a warm leaf tainted beverage_."

"That's deep," Genma mocked.

"Fine," Kakashi snapped, "I just want to know what you think Genma and I should do. I'm asking for your expert opinion as a master of the underworld."

Riba sighed, "I think that you should come in and have tea."

Kakashi looked down at her, "Genma and I aren't fucking criminals_._ We need a plan to get our lives back. You know how to make that happen, so do it."

She briefly looked at Genma who was standing cold, entirely backing up Kakashi. "Exactly what do you expect me to do? I respect that this situation is entirely foreign to you, but we still don't know what happened. I have many trusted spies in Konoha, eventually they'll get us enough information for me to advise you."

"Spies in Konoha? You wouldn't dare..." He lectured.

"Kakashi, are you sure that you want to judge my tactics right now?"

He paused,"about that tea."

...

The tea was actually quite good, and Riba's private chambers were flawlessly comfortable. Two ornate couches sat on each side of a glass coffee table, and though the room was predictably covered in gray tones, light filtering in from the large windows gave it a warm feel.

Riba sat on a chair behind the couch that Neji was resting on, letting his long hair fall over the back and trimming the ends with sharp bladed scissors. She probably had teams of stylists, but from the loving way that she combed her fingers through the strands, Kakashi figured that it was more of a tradition than anything else. They looked peaceful, enough to make Kakashi retreat to _Icha Icha_ to distract himself from the sickeningly intimate scene.

_"Oh Kachi", Ria said innocently, "I don't know_

_ how to pleasure you like that! _

_You're the only man I've ever been with!"_

He closed the book with an irritated snap.

Sasuke sat down on the couch opposite Neji and unceremoniously rested his feet on the table, "think you could give me a trim next? You're the only one that does it the way I like it."

"I've heard that one before...from your brother," Riba mocked.

Sasuke grinned, "yeah, that's probably true."

Riba gently lifted Neji's hair over the back of the couch and rested it over his shoulder. She pulled the chair around the couches and sat behind Sasuke, grimacing as she tackled his unruly cowlick. Ten minutes later, she had it expertly tamed and looking presentable.

Genma smiled over the cup of tea at his lips, "I don't suppose that you can do split ends?"

Sasuke and Neji looked at him as if he had crossed some invisible line.

Kakashi sat down next to Sasuke, "I could use a trim." It wasn't true of course, he had a barber in Konoha who had been cutting his hair since he was six, but there was obviously a hierarchy among Riba and her men, and Kakashi needed to see where he stood.

Riba slid over behind Kakashi with Sasuke and Neji watching closely. They looked across the table at each other, silently communicating what Kakashi could only assume was where he would be placed in the pecking-order of their outlaw team.

Riba ran her fingers through his hair, fluffing and spreading it out behind him as best she could. She eyed Genma as she began to cut, "I'll have some clothing brought for you two. Running around in funeral blacks and Jounin blues will look suspicious. Even without your hitae-ate and vests, there is no mistaking where you guys are from."

Kakashi sighed, he had never been anything but a Konoha shinobi. Now that he was a criminal, he had no idea how to dress or act. "So," he said as he watched strands of his silver hair fall into his lap, "are you guys planing some kind of caper that I should be preparing for?"

"Did you jut say _caper_?" Sasuke asked in sarcastic disbelief. "Who says shit like that?"

There was a quiet knock at the door and Neji went to answer it, smirking all the way. Sasuke made even less of an attempt to hid his amusement and shook his head disapprovingly.

Riba silently snipped, listening as Sasuke and Neji were particularly hard on Kakashi. He had been a legendary Konoha commander, with all the authority and arrogance granted by the position, but now he was on their turf with a serious disadvantage. He had been knocked off his high horse pretty hard.

"Well don't you look pretty," Sasuke snickered as Riba finished up.

Riba's eyelids fell shut, heavy with disappointment. Just when she thought that there might be hope for them cooperating...

Kakashi stood up and walked over to the nearest wall mirror. He was taken aback at the alterations. Without his hitae-ate to hold his hair up, it had fallen messily to the side. Riba had taken advantage of that and trimmed it so that it gradually lengthened in the back. Styled much the same as Sasuke's bangs, except all on one side. It looked surprisingly good, much less haphazard than he was used to.

"You look like a criminal, such an improvement" Sasuke quipped.

"Yes, and since I'm now one of you there's nothing stopping me from slamming your head through that glass coffee table."

"That's actually an appropriate answer coming from someone who has just lost all moral high ground by fleeing Konoha to save his pathetic life."

Kakashi turned and stared Sasuke down viciously, he had just passed the limit of Kakashi's patience. Before Kakashi could strike, Genma plopped down onto the couch in front of Riba, "about my split ends."

"She only cares for her men, you fucking moron," Sasuke growled.

"Does sleeping with her make you one of her men?" Genma retorted.

Riba froze. This was about to get much worse. As if answering her prayers, Neji walked over and sat down across from her, looking over Kakashi, Genma, and Sasuke with a disappointed glare.

"There's a matter that you may want to attend to," Neji said pointedly. "The Hokage is at the base of the mountain and is asking permission to be brought up."

Riba's tone instantly went cold, "which one? The Hokage, or the Adjutant Hokage?"

"Does it matter?" Genma asked rhetorically.

"Yes, it does actually. If it's Tsunade, then she may have escaped the prison and is looking for sanctuary, which I will of course grant her."

Kakashi walked over, "the other option is that it's Naruto, so either way you need to let him up."

"Might I remind you that I'm the one who's in charge now. Furthermore, death sentences have to be approved by the Hokage. _Someone_ had to order your execution." She stood, "Neji, tell them to take the Hokage to Ambassador's Peak, and get your Council Robes on. It's time to go to work."

...

"What was the point of this? We look exactly like we did before except that now we're wearing gray and you have a fancy haircut," Genma complained as he examined himself in the full length mirror in the guest quarters of Ambassador's Peak.

"Riba probably picked cloths that she thought would be familiar to us," Kakashi said as he pushed his one-sided bangs away from his eye. "Besides, this may be the most luxurious clothing we've ever owned."

"That's true. What is this stuff? Stretchy silk? Is that even possible?" He asked as he rubbed his sleeve.

"Could you please stop preening? I don't want to be late for this. It may be our only chance to talk our way back into Konoha, if that's even possible."

"Yeah, well you may want to consider exchanging your money for the local currency of booze and hookers, because I'm pretty sure that the Rogue Territory is going to be the only place we can talk our way into for the rest of our lives."

"Issues like ours are probably trivial compared to the political feats Riba has maneuvered in the past."

"Oh, so now you trust her abilities..."

"I've always trusted her abilities, it's her morality that I question."

They walked down the hall to the meeting room. The large stone turret was minimalist in style, though expertly crafted. Purposely designed to give away nothing about Uindo culture, wealth, or power. They walked into a simple room containing a table with five chairs.

Riba and Neji were already seated next to each other, staring off at nothing in particular. Riba fiddled with a thin metal shoulder plate that lay over her black dress. It looked as if it was made of an ornate metal lace, delicately woven together in intricate patterns. "Bring in the Hokage," she commanded.

Kakashi looked around the room, wondering who exactly she was speaking to. The door opened and Naruto walked in, wearing his white Rokudaime coat over a forest green Konoha vest.

"Welcome to Ambassador's Peak," Riba said. "Neji, my Royal Guard, will be sitting in on our meeting today, as will as my apprentice."

A man wearing the traditional black uniform of the Dark Winds materialized alongside the wall behind her. His head was fully covered with the cloth mask of the Uindo Shadow Assassins, but from his build and mannerisms, Kakashi had no doubt that it was indeed Sasuke.

"What can Uindo do for you today?" Riba asked pleasantly.

Naruto took a deep breath, "it's about the black-ops mission."

Her gentle expression instantly went cold, "can I assume that your knowledge of the mission indicates that the information has leaked?"

"Yes, Kabuto leaked the information into Konoha shortly after he and Orochimaru began caring for Madara. Apparently, they cured him of the poison and he is expected to recover."

"Kabuto?" Riba bit out. "I have the sudden urge to pay him a cold visit with a hot blade. A trip that until now has only be prevented by the fact that he was born in Uindo."

"We have more immediate problems than Kabuto. Misinformation is rampant and everyone believes that Tsunade secretly ordered you guys to heal Madara by bringing him the lungs. It was just the type of scandal that the elders needed."

Kakashi's gut knotted around Naruto's words, "are you saying that the elders are back in power?"

"The minute the scandal broke they began their campaign to usurp control, claiming that Tsunade's treason was far worse than anything they had ever done. Their first orders were to impression her and I, exile Riba and Sasuke, and execute you and Genma for high treason."

"I can't believe this is happening," Genma said, mortified.

"I can," Naruto retorted. "I had just managed to push the elders out, and you all decide to pull this stunt? I have no proof that I could manage Konoha without them and not enough time to prove myself. Now everyone thinks that without the elders Konoha will fall to corruption. I am completely discredited as a leader. All those years spent getting _Golden Eyes_ published and turning the public against the them is ruined."

Kakashi stared blankly, defaulting to hiding his shock and anger below a guise of aloofness, "we can't possibly be held responsible..."

"Why are you here?" Riba interrupted unapologetically. "This is all very interesting, but I don't see why you came here to tell us this. Unless, there's something you want?"

Kakashi knew that she was wretchedly correct. There was no need for Naruto to deliver this information in person unless he also needed something from them. She stared at Naruto with Hyuuga stoicism and the smallest hint of Uchiha fire in her eyes, steaming open his defenses.

"I'm here because..." Naruto trailed off in a mixture of steeled resolve and shame. "I would like to hire you."

"Hire me?"

"To assassinate the elders."

Shocked silence filled the room. Genma and Kakashi exchanged knowing glares. This was unacceptable coming from Naruto. It was low and dirty and befitting of any leader before him, but not him. He was supposed to be their pure hope for a just society. Kakashi could feel the last vestiges of his patriotic faith vanish. Naruto it seems was not above corruption, and that path only ever escalated.

Riba stared evenly, her voice wrapped in calm confidence, "that would be high treason, Naruto."

"What would you have me do?" Naruto defended. "Look what they've done to you and Kakashi, to me, to Konoha! We can't go back to that, we've come too far."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure that I should have killed them years ago," there was a finality to his voice that was unshakable.

Riba leaned onto the table, intertwining her fingers in front of her, "that may be so, but you want to hire Uindo to assassinate two prominent government officials. That isn't simple or cheap."

"I'm willing to pay half of Konoha's treasury."

"Which I'm sure is a tremendous amount to you, but is trivial to us. You'll need something more substantial."

"I uh..." Naruto trailed off dejectedly. Obviously, he hadn't considered the cost associated with Uindo. It was, after all, his first assassination. While he struggled for an answer, Riba's eyes began to swirl and transform.

She looked distant as her Sharingan took over, "never mind, you can afford it. You have something we want."

Kakashi wondered what Sasuke had suggested. He hated when they did that.

Naruto grinned, "when can you start?"

"Right after the High Council hears your proposal and agrees to assign someone to your case."

"Someone?" Naruto balked. "I don't want to hire someone, I want to hire _you_."

"All of the Uindo Assassins are beyond qualified, I assure you."

"I don't care," he slammed his fist on the table, reverting to his childish temper. "If I'm going to do this, I want to hire someone I trust. You're a Hyuuga and an Uchiha, and you were born in Konoha, I read your file. You were raised in Uindo, but you're one of us. You saved Konoha from the Akatsuki, so I believe in your loyalty."

She remained still, unmoved by his emotional appeal. Kakashi sighed inwardly, that trick never worked on her.

"Hokage," Riba said, all business. "You don't seem to understand, the council decided who goes on missions. I can't be directly hired."

"But you've taken missions in Konoha. You've killed for us without the council's approval!"

"The council considers my Konoha missions as a part of my continued training. What you're asking for is a whole other matter."

"I can't accept that. It has to be you," he demanded.

"Feel free to tell that to the council. If by some miracle they approve, assassinating the elders would be my distinct pleasure."

"So, what now?" Naruto asked.

"I call an emergency meeting of the High Council and you present your request. One suggestion though, two of the council members are former Sovereign. They're extremely intelligent and will instantly detect any attempt to deceive, so be as honest and direct as possible."

"Wait, don't Sovereigns serve for life?"

"We usually live more than once and are allowed to retire. Many Sovereigns choose to become council members when the rare position becomes available. The High Council holds the real power in Uindo."

"I do have one more question."

"Of course, how may I help our newest client?"

"Who did Kakashi's hair?" Naruto reached over an grabbed awkwardly at Kakashi's silver bangs, "you'd never know that he's a dilapidated bachelor."

...

Riba sat at the end of a long desk beside the nine Hight Council members. Neji stood behind her with his hand on her shoulder, continuously surveying the room with his Byakugan. A man that Kakashi could only assume was Sasuke, led them into the room. Kakashi and Genma sat in chairs against the back wall while Naruto stood in front of the council.

The eldest member sat forward, his pale skin and white hair in stark contrast to his black robes. His sharp voice reverberated through the chamber, "welcome Hokage, how may Uindo be of service to you?"

Naruto took a deep breath, uncomfortable with the emotionless stares of the council, "I've come to hire you to assassinate the Konoha elders because..."

"We don't care why," the councilman said, briskly cutting him off. "You mean the brother and sister, correct?"

"Yes."

"Two prominent political figures? I'm afraid that you can't afford our services."

"I'm willing to pay half of Konoha's treasury."

"Which is nothing to us."

"And, all the historic relics and scrolls collected from the abandoned Uchiha compound. Considering that their clan is nearing extinction, and Uindo is their sworn protectors, the remains of their society should be all the payment that you require."

The council members nodded amongst each other. The eldest smiled, "I think that we may be able to come to an agreement."

"...and, I want the mission to be assigned to Uchiha Uindo Ribaasu."

The man laughed heartily, it looked awkward to see his hardened mouth smile, "I'm afraid that won't be possible."

"But I thought she was a talented assassin?" Naruto protested.

"Oh she is, but she is also our..." he struggled with the translation, "I believe that you would consider her a general. We won't sully her by sending her out on anything less than killing Kages."

Genma spit slightly has he fought not to laugh. He leaned over by Kakashi ear and whispered, "sully? Seriously? They do know that the ANBU have her go undercover as a prostitute, right?"

Kakashi promptly elbowed him in the gut, "no, and if they find out then she'll never be allowed to train in Konoha ever again, so shut the hell up."

"It has to be her," Naruto demanded. "I won't accept anyone that I don't know and trust."

The man's face hardened, "I see that we'll have to negotiate. Sovereign, would you please have your apprentice escort the Hokage's entourage outside?"

Kakashi pictured the grin that must have been on Sasuke's face as he silently hustled them out of the room, abruptly shutting the door behind them.

...

"Genma, stop it," Kakashi scolded as he watched Genma take the senbon from his mouth and slyly attempt to poke one of the masked guards in the arm.

"Come on," Genma pleaded. "They don't move, I can't even see them breathing. Besides, don't they go through some crazy torture exam to become assassins? I bet that he won't even feel this."

"Maybe they won't feel the pain, but I bet they'll still beat the shit out of you for touching them."

"Well, at least it would pass the time. They've left us standing in this damn hall for over an..."

Riba burst through the door, followed closely by Neji, Sasuke, and Naruto. "Good luck Naruto," she said sweetly as she laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry!" Naruto grinned wide, "Konoha prisons aren't that bad!"

"Regardless, if everything goes smoothly you won't have to be in there very long." She turned to Kakashi and Genma, "you guys have to leave tonight."

"To go where exactly?" Kakashi asked.

"Somewhere close to the Konoha border in case you're needed. I know of a place where you'll be completely hidden." Her eyes shifted and narrowed, "Commander Velovis, what is that thing sticking out of your arm?"


	12. Uchiha Uindo

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

_You'd teach me of honest things,_

_Things that were daring, things that were clean._

_I hid my soiled hands behind my back._

_Somewhere along the line, I must've got_

_Off track with you._

_- Foolish Games - Jewel_

...

Three years ago, Uchiha Sasuke was illegally resurrected into a cell in Uindo after being killed by the man later to become the Hokage of Konoha.

Uchiha Uindo Ribaasu was there, having fulfilled her promise to resurrect him. Strong and unwavering in her loyalty to her clans, she brought him whatever he needed and listen to whatever he said, even if it was just angry shouting.

Months passed and finally there was no more anger left in him. He had yelled everything there was to say and was tired of repeating himself. For a while he opted to say nothing, but eventually curiosity got the best of him and he started to examine his surrounding, and her.

Riba came and went randomly, with no rhyme or reason. When he actually sat and thought about it, she was quite mysterious. Everyone wanted something from him, Orochimaru wanted his body, Konoha wanted his obedience, Sakura wanted his love, and the Akatsuki wanted his power, but Riba asked for nothing. He wondered if part of her duties as Sovereign were to look after his wellbeing, or if maybe he was a favor that she owed to Itachi, but there seemed to be little evidence either way. She was the only person he had ever known who seemingly had no motive.

He tried to bait her, threatening to destroy Konoha. It all backfired the moment she agreed to help, requiring only that he give her a good reason why it would be worth her time. His mind grasped wildly for answers, stumbled, landed on its feet, and played the vendetta of justice card. She wasn't convinced, too regal to bother with such nonsense, especially from a nation that was one of Uindo's best customers.

She neither coaxed nor tried to play the caring mentor when he demanded to be set free, only asked where he would go. He tried to convince himself of his convictions, but in the end if Konoha was destroyed he didn't know what he would do. He had never looked that far ahead, but she wanted answers, ones that he couldn't give.

He ask if he could enter the Uindo Assassin Academy. He didn't know if it was the right path, but he had nowhere else to go. There was nothing left in the world for him, so he resolved to try his luck in the elusive land of Dark Winds. She agreed in her usual cavalier manner that didn't make him feel indebted.

The schooling was rigorous and the physical training merciless, but somehow he was well suited for the work. Qualities like obsessive dedication and the ability to fight past the limits of endurance and morality were held in the highest regard. All the qualities that Konoha had demonized him for were making him a rising star among the ruthless assassin-warrior culture of Uindo.

He would see her as his class marched down the cathedral hallways of the High Council Building, absorbed in conversation with her generals and High Council members, always guarded, always with Neji at her side. Dark dresses made of fine silk or lace, ornate and flawlessly tailored. The image of strength, power, and wealth. The farthest thing from human.

He never knew what the guards had been told, but they always let him pass into the Sovereign's Chambers when she was alone. When Neji was out on business, Sasuke would make Riba his business. The surroundings were substantially nicer, but the sex was the same as it had been in the Akatsuki compound years ago. Rough and hungry, reckless abandonment, it would sate him for a few days before the craving would strike again. He'd tell her that she made his nights a little less dark, and it was true. She could make him laugh, he hated that.

He talked to her about his life, about the family he had lost, about his pain. She wouldn't pay him platitudes like the people in Konoha who would empathize hoping that it would "fix" or "heal" him and transform him into whatever they thought he should be. She understood, _really_ understood. His clan was her clan, his brother was her lover, his pain was her pain. She let him own who he had become.

He researched the history of the Sovereigns in the main library. Candidates were chosen at birth and meticulously analyzed. Only one would be elected by the people, and she would enter a school designed just for her. Her presence was crafted to inspire the clans to follow her, appealing to their instinct on the most basic level. She would travel the five nations, fighting as a shinobi, priming herself to understand the needs of her future soldiers. She would enter the Assassin Academy and suffer along side her troops, earning their complete respect and unquestioning obedience.

Sasuke was starting to understand his intoxicating attraction to Riba, after all, she had been designed for him.

The War Games were the premiere event of the year. As a mere student, Sasuke had been excluded and forced to remain in the barracks. The week dragged on endlessly. Upon his release, he immediately headed for the Sovereign's Chambers. The guards, who had just returned themselves, exhaustedly waved him in.

He felt his body pull apart as he dissolve and slipped under her door. It was dark, late in the evening, and she had the lights off. He walked towards her bed but froze the second he detected movement. Their porcelain skin blended with the ivory colored fabric, but the form of their bodies was unmistakable. Under the silk sheets, Neji was rocking slowly between her legs.

Sasuke breathed deep, his uniform covered his body and camouflaged his chakra. He tensed for a moment, not sure if the Hyuuga would be able to see through his deception, but even if they could, they were too distracted to notice. The sheets slid over their bodies as she arched her back and he leaned against her cheek, whispering something that made her smile.

Sasuke could smell their coupling and hear their hushed pants. His breathes were getting shallow and his body warm. He needed to leave.

He slowly dissolved where he stood and escaped into the hallway. He stormed out of her chambers, ripping off his mask just long enough to cast a venomous glare at her guards. How could they not know that Neji was there? _Damn them all_.

He had a private room in the barracks. Spartan-like in design, stone walls and floors, no windows, just large enough to fit a twin bed and a desk. He fell back onto the hard mattress and stared blankly at the celling. He knew what they were doing, he had just never seen it done before. Sure, he had seen people have sex, but that wasn't what this was, they were making love. It was entirely different from anything he had ever experienced. He hadn't even felt the desire to kiss except to stop someone from talking.

Three more long days. He developed a pain in his chest and the dull ache was affecting his training. He debated returning to see Riba, but couldn't bring himself to leave his bed at night. Had Neji been wild and careless, had she crawled over his body staring him down like pray, it would have been fine. It wouldn't have mattered then.

He analyzed her over and over again, noticing things that he had missed before. Ever since she had released him from prison, she had stopped visiting. She never turned him away, but never actually came to see him. Was that a condition of her position as Sovereign? She couldn't turn down a Uchiha, but didn't care enough to bother with him otherwise?

Was this rejection? Was this what it felt like?

He resolved to stop visiting her. He wondered if it meant that he would never see her again. If he would vanish into obscurity. Maybe the only person who could feel his pain and see him for what he was, was tired of listening. Maybe he was just an obligation, a chore.

Seven more days, and he counted every one. The night was too quite, and he didn't want to sleep anyway. The only entertainment he was allowed in his room was a radio and any books that he wanted from the archives. He took off his shirt, laid down, and tuned the radio to something classical, rich, and slow.

He mock reached for a book on his desk, but his hand went for the sword leaning against the wall instead. It slid smoothly out of its sheath and sung as the blade whipped through the air and pointed at the foot of his bed, faster than instinct, the academy had beat that into him.

Plain black clothing, not unlike what she was wore in the Akatsuki prison the night they first met. She was just a person to him then, he hadn't seen Uindo and didn't understand her power.

He hadn't even sensed her passing through the keyhole, she was good.

He stopped thinking, wouldn't allow himself to, logic ground to a halt and he let his mind go blank. He laid his sword down on the desk and walked around the bed. He watched her look over his body. He knew that he aroused her, that his body was toned and perfected and she would succumb to him, women always did.

There was black velvet in her smile. She didn't make any ridiculous mews or moans when he kissed along her neck, only breathed deep. She was so Uchiha, he wanted to become absorbed in it. He opened her shirt and slid it off, nothing underneath but her soft skin and curves, no longer suggested though fabric but outright stated and warm under his fingers. Obviously she hadn't come to talk.

He pushed her onto the bed, her calm eyes never leaving him. She slid off his pants with her feet as he kissed below her beasts, full and tight from arousal. He felt himself slowing down, the skin on her stomach was so smooth, how hadn't he noticed it before? Her pants glided off under his hands and her long legs parted without him even having to ask. He leaned onto her and ran two fingers over her lips and into her mouth, she would gasp otherwise, she always did, he was too big for her. There were monitors patrolling the barracks and the scandal would crucify him, this needed to be done silently.

She was smooth and warm around him, he rolled his hips, getting comfortable in her. She winced, but still pulled him deeper with a squeeze of her legs around his waist. She rolled him onto his back, sat up, rose and fell in smooth graceful thrusts. Her head was tipped back and her body shined from the hot mist on her skin. He let her use him to pleasure herself, just watching and feeling her movement.

The tension built, uncomfortable and straining for release. He could feel it coming, but it wasn't what he wanted. Had it always been over so fast? It had been so long and would be over soon, and then she would be gone. He wanted to enjoy her slowly. His hands tightened on her hips, holding her in place, slowing her down. He took deep breaths, calming himself, and sat up onto his shins, threading an arm under each of her knees and bracing his hands against the wall, lifting her up and giving himself complete control. Slow thrusts, feeling each one. She wrapped her arms around his neck, holding herself against his chest and panting as her back rubbed against the cold stone.

He could feel a tight mound of flesh deep inside of her rub against his tip. Every thrust moved her, and she shuttered against him. This was right, he was doing it right.

He pulled one of his arms out from under her leg, spayed his hand over her cheek and dipped his thumb into her mouth, stifling her screams as her muscles fluttered around him. He bit down on her shoulder as he throbbed with release. They stayed still against each other, enjoying the pulsating as it overcame and faded.

She rubbed his scalp with long fingers, combing intimately through his black hair. He looked at her absent smile and flushed skin. Wavy auburn hair with streaks of black and brown framing amber eyes, his eyes, his gift to her. He had never noticed her lips before, they curled devilishly when she grinned, it pulled him in. His lips rubbed softly against hers as they parted and closed in slow caresses. Her eyelashes brushed against his cheek, and he heard the orchestra in the background that he had forgotten was there until it began to set the rhythm. The moment seemed so vivid and clear.

She slept quietly beside him. He strained to stay awake for reasons that he couldn't identify, but that seemed vital. The music and warmth eventually overcame him. She was gone before he woke up.

He had to start thinking again eventually, and the morning was as good of a time as any to feel nothing. He tried to put her out of his mind, but the more he forced it the stronger the memories became. He felt like he wanted to run, never speak to her again and hope that the feeling would fade, but then there would be no one left in his life. He had been alone since he was a child and felt secure in it, but having her around had felt better than being alone. It was like the best parts of his clan had been captured inside of her and had been given back to him. He didn't want to give it up.

The next time he saw her was on a tour of the extravagant and meticulously well guarded Assassin's Headquarters. Only assassins, council members, and students on the cusp of graduating were permitted to enter. Chakra laced moving maps covered tables in the center of a large round room. Balconies on the higher floors circled the interior and extended up to a domed ceiling. She wore an navy-black uniform that perfectly matched the color cast by shadows at night. A mask dangled from her fingers as she leaned against the wall, grimacing as one of the council members spoke privately with her.

His class whispered as their instructor rushed them into an adjoining room. Sovereigns usually trained in the five shinobi nations or lead the military in Uindo. Rarely were they called to suit up and preform an assassination. Hushed rumors passed between his classmates, had Uindo been hired to assassinate a Kage? The rare event brought in tremendous profits and was only assigned to the most accomplished among them. The Sovereign and the council members loved to snap up such prestigious missions. A star was added to the inside of an assassins's tattooed achievement bands for each Kage that they killed. An assassins could live three lifetimes without ever having received such a mission. Rumor had it that Riba already had a star.

A week later, an expensive citywide party was thrown to celebrate a substantial addition to the treasury. The barracks was flooded with rumors that Riba had been seen with a second star. Sasuke craved an hour just to talk with her about it. That was when he knew that he had crossed the line and done something that couldn't be undone. He was interested in what someone besides himself did, how their day went, how they felt. He actually cared.

He had gone too far to go back and could only go forward. The moment that night fell he cleaned himself up and headed straight for her chambers. His adrenaline was high as he sailed past her guards. He knew that he would calm down once he saw her, the darkness in her made him feel comfortable.

She wasn't in her room. He walked out onto the balcony and instantly felt a presence. Neji was sitting at a small table with two chairs, the last person Sasuke had any desire to see. He debated leaving, but knew better. Neji was the Sovereign's Royal Guard and a command from him was as if it had come from Riba herself. He couldn't leave until Neji decided to dismiss him.

Sasuke vaguely remembered Neji from his childhood, but the man seated before him was subtly different. His skin was exceptionally pale, his eyes were too white, and his hair was lighter than any Hyuuga he had ever seen. Sasuke guessed that Riba's chakra was coursing through his veins, bleaching his features.

"Sit," Neji ordered nonchalantly as he dusted a bit of unnoticeable debris from the sleeve of his dark green robes.

Sasuke sat in the chair across from him but remained silent. He was required to obey, but had no intention of volunteering information.

"Why are you here?" Neji asked in a calmingly low voice, just above a whisper.

"To visit the Sovereign."

"Even though, as a student, you're forbidden to approach her?"

"Yes."

"I see. Well, the lady Sovereign is away this evening. She has teleported to Konoha to play cards with the Ferocious Five."

"Yet you remained behind."

"Yet I remained behind," Neji reiterated pointedly.

"And why is that exactly?"

"Because someone needs to run the country in her absence," he picked up a porcelain tea cup. "Why, I wonder, would the Sovereign be interested in seeing a mere academy student?"

"I wouldn't know. She's never seems to have a motive in speaking with me."

"That sounds like her. Rarely does she have a motive in purely social situations. She does what she wants as the mood strikes her."

Sasuke looked off into the distance, over the twinkling lights of the city, "I don't believe the same could be said of you. I doubt that you're bothering to speak with me just for the pleasure of my company."

"How astute you are..."

"Do you love her?" Sasuke interrupted sharply. "Am I here over jealousy?"

"Don't be juvenile!" Neji snapped. "Of course I love her, and have something even greater than her love. Her and I are bound by blood and war."

"What do you _want_?" Sasuke asked suspiciously.

"Only her safety."

"Which is your job to provide. I don't see why I'm here."

"Ah yes. Uindo was a much simpler place back when I volunteered for the position. The Dark Wind country has grown substantially under her rule, and she can no longer afford to leave the city unattended. Thus, here I sit, acting as her voice while she travels the five nations demonstrating the vast power that can be had should they decide to hire Uindo for all their corrupt needs."

"So the Sovereign's Royal Guard no longer remains at her side, so what?"

"She might be killed."

"Killed?" Sasuke laughed, "she's an immortal dragon. That shouldn't be a concern."

Neji leaned on the table, tenting his fingers, "immortal probably isn't the correct term. You haven't seen what I've seen. The Northern Base almost ended her. She's not immune to fatigue, famine, or disease. Her body can weaken and fail to heal rapidly enough to save her. She will only continue to live as long as nothing kills her, and something very well may the next time that Konoha convinces the Hyuuga to ask her for help. She can't refuse the Hyuuga, and therefore Konoha keeps her like a dog, ready to be unleashed whenever they have a mission that's too messy for their own shinobi to handle."

"Ah Konoha, always ready to invent even deeper levels of corruption."

"I see that we're of the same mind about this. The truth is that Riba has become too successful for her own good, and now both her city and her life need to be guarded simultaneously." Neji grinned antagonistically, "if Itachi were alive, the choice would be obvious. However, in an unexpected turn of events it seems that his younger brother has stepped into his position, and into her bed."

Sasuke silently glared, provoked but not foolish enough to attack. The insinuation that he was disrespecting his brother's memory was clear, but he wasn't going to take the bait. Eventually he would have to face his brother in the next world, and he would answer for it to him, not Neji.

"You take offense," Neji said offhandedly, "but I don't mean to offend you. Whether you realize it or not, you're being given the opportunity to have everything that you seem to want."

"What do you suppose it is that I want?"

"Strength, glory, her attention..."

"And what's the price? There's always a cost."

"Your total devotion. But given your psychological tendency towards obsession, I don't think that will be a problem."

"And you're just going to hand me this power?" He asked suspiciously.

"No, you're going to take it. You'll graduate soon, and will be given a single opportunity to request the master of your choosing to mentor you. The Sovereign will receive many requests, but will accept only yours."

"How could you know that?"

"I know," Neji said definitively. "If you succeed as her apprentice, she will take you on permanently as her partner. Second to being her Royal Guard or a member of the High Council, it's the most powerful and prestigious position that you could ever hope to achieve. You will be beyond reproach."

"And then what?"

"Then I will guard her city, and you will guard her life. If you submit the request, I will know that you have accepted the terms of the arrangement. If not, then it will be as if this conversation never happened. Either choice is permanent, so think very hard about the shape that you want your life to take."

...

His first day as an assassin and he was accosted immediately upon entering the headquarters. He was blindfolded and flown by warbird to a peak much farther down the mountain range. It didn't appear to have been terraformed nor was volcanically active.

A tiny archway, almost indistinguishable from the surrounding rock, led into a long hallway and a hardened steel door. It was unlocked and swung open with a slight push.

The mansion was magnificent. A three story wall that was transparent from the inside overlooked Uindo peak while being completely disguised on the outside. Two staircases flanked each side of the round room and extended up to a second floor balcony that led deeper into the mountain. Below the balcony, a set of double glass doors led into a lavish garden that received light from a opening in the peak. A transparent slab of rock with holes in the sides let rain water drain through from the open chasm and formed a celling above the garden. He could see scratch marks in the stone from where someone had been training on top of it.

He walked back into the main room. The furnishings seemed ancient, yet meticulosity maintained and tasteful. Pictures lined the wall below the far staircase. He walked slowly by, studying each one. An old picture of a wide eyed newborn wrapped tightly in a fan printed blanket, starring with gray-white eyes at the dark haired man proudly holding her. A young ANBU in a wolf mask standing beside her in the Uchiha compound. The Ferocious Five and the rest of the Northern Fifty standing in front of Konoha's main gate. Her head resting on Itachi's shoulder and his head against hers, wrapped in Akatsuki robes and subtly grinning. His necklace hung delicately from the upper corner of the picture frame.

An ached door way led into a windowless room lit by century old oil lamps. She stood at a table with her back to him, carefully cataloging various boxes, weapons, and scrolls. Clothing hung from racks that surrounded the room, regal dresses and soiled rags, each tagged for teleportation. Some were men's styles, his size.

She turned and leaned back against the table, running her hands along its edge. A dark smile crossed her lips, "want to play a game?"


	13. Damn It, No One is Themselves!

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

"So she lived here with Itachi?" Genma asked as he looked around the mismatched yet expensively furnished room.

"Yeah," Kakashi grumbled as he sat down on the bed, trying exceptionally hard not to picture her in it.

"I can't see her as an Akatsuki member. I mean, I know that it happened, but she just doesn't fit the cold and selfish profile."

"I can. Labels like _criminal_ don't matter to her, all she sees is the welfare of her clans."

Genma scoffed, "and what happens someday when the welfare of her clans conflicts with your welfare, or Konoha's?"

"If she attacks Konoha, we kill her, simple as that. She would understand."

"If she can even be killed."

"If something is alive, then it can die."

"Why Kakashi?" Genma said as he looked over his shoulder and grinned, "why do you have to go after the strong rebellious women? Can't you just be satisfied with the barmaids?

Kakashi leaned back onto the soft comforter, "listen, shes never tried to talk me into being a husband or a father or even a boyfriend, and she's my equal, not some whiny virginal child. Besides would _you _turn her down if you had the chance to be with her?"

Genma paused as he tried to figure out a way to answer without sounding guilty. Sensing that his delayed response might arouse suspicion, he bit out, "no," in as emotionless of a voice as he could muster. Kakashi instantly picked up on the fluctuations in his tone he was just about to begin an interrogation when there was a knock at the door.

"Kakashi? Genma?" A rough voice called out.

"Asuma is that you?" Genma asked mirthfully as he opened the door. "I'm so happy that you came here right now!"

Asuma walked in and looked over the mismatched decor, "she put you in a criminal's den I see. You two certainly look the part, nice hair Kakashi."

"What do you want Asuma?" Kakashi deadpanned.

"A messenger bird arrived at my house last night with a note from Riba. It asked me to find you guys and bring you to the Fire Country Lord's Estate."

"I guess she did end up needing us after all," Genma said.

"That doesn't seem strange to you?" Kakashi asked.

"That she needs our help? Yeah, I guess so."

"No, I mean that she sent Asuma to come get us. She knows where we are, why didn't she just send the messenger bird directly to us?"

"Maybe she didn't think it though," Asuma suggested.

"No, I agree with Kakashi," Genma said. "Riba is really laid back about missions. She plans as little as possible, less than any other shinobi I've ever seen. If she actually took the time to send you to us, there must be a reason."

"Did the note say what she want us to do?" Kakashi ask.

"No, nothing I haven't already told you. All I know is the newspaper says that you two are missing-nin, and that Riba wants you to go see the lords for some reason."

Kakashi sighed, "expecting us to go into a dangerous situation with no intel, why am I not surprised."

Asuma laughed, "yeah, Uindo do that. I'm afraid you'll just have to make the best of it."

"Wait, what did you say?"

"That you'll just have to make the best of it?"

"No, _Uindo do that_. Look underneath the underneath, aren't you one of the only outsiders to study at their academy? Maybe that's why you're here. What do you know about their assassins?"

"Not much, I only studied at their General Education Academy. The Assassin Academy is very secretive, so all I know is what rumors have told me."

"Well, were there any rumors that might help us?

"It's hard to say. Their assassins are really manipulative an brutal, but you already knew that. They're highly specialized and pretty much only do political assassinations. Oh, and they have a code that they follow at all times, however I only know the tenants, not how they're applied."

"That's a better than nothing I suppose. What are they?"

"Misinformation is information, one alone and two as a couple, the truth is stronger than a lie but scandal is stronger than truth, and be fluid into an empty glass," Asuma rattled off.

"How cryptic," Genma said.

"Actually, I can see how they're quite brilliant," Kakashi contradicted. "Misinformation has served Riba and Sasuke well, and I can see how killing two targets at once would be easier than killing them separately. As for the scandal, just at look how the public ate up _Golden Eyes_ and _Icha Icha Return_."

"Yeah, but _fluid into an empty glass_? Unless that refers to how drunk Riba and Sasuke get while on missions, I don't get it."

"You were the one that brought that disgusting vodka cocktail, if memory serves."

"It's about being adaptable," Asuma corrected. "The mission is the glass and the assassin is the liquid, conforming to whatever shape the mission requires. Their personalities are extremely malleable."

"So how are we supposed to help? Our assassin training is completely different, more the sneak in at midnight and slay theory," Genma said.

"Wait, is she about to assassinate someone?! Oh god, is it the elders?" Asuma asked. Kakashi and Genma didn't answer, there was no point, Asuma had already figured it out. He shook his head, "your ability to help will be entirely based on how fluid you can be. My advice is to go in there like a blank slate, and be whatever she needs you to be."

...

There were guards everywhere. ANBU were crawling over the grounds of the noble estate in droves. It made sense, they were outside the protection of Konoha's stone walls, ten miles south of the city. Moon glow reflected off the polished wood of the temple styled building, making it look almost haunted. Kakashi, Genma, and Asuma kneeled behind some forest foliage just outside the range of the guard's senses.

"Did Riba say anything about how we're supposed to get in?" Kakashi whispered.

"Nothing."

"Are you sure?" He asked patronizingly, as if Asuma just wasn't trying hard enough.

"Hey, she wasn't my student, or lover, or...whatever."

"Both actually, didn't you read the book?" Genma teased.

"Whatever!" Asuma hissed. "Either way, you know more about her than I do."

Kakashi sighed, "I never taught her this. You're the one that lived in Uindo, so I'm asking for your educated opinion."

Asuma looked over the grounds. The guards were patrolling every angle, and that was only ones that he could see. "Do you trust her?"

Kakashi continued to silently watched the guards.

"This isn't a rhetorical question. Do you trust her?"

"Why are you asking me this?" Kakashi said irritatedly.

"You asked for my opinion. Honestly, I can't see her sneaking in and assassinating from the shadows..."

"Wait, don't they call them Shadow Assassins?" Genma interrupted with a sarcastic edge.

"Well, yes, but I don't think that's the way she would handle this. Two high profile targets in a heavily guarded and fortified compound? It's begging to be infiltrated by misinformation and deception. I think that we should walk right through the front door."

"You can't be serious," Genma protested. "Kakashi and I are missing-nin, they'll kill us the minute we get within range of their kunai, if not sooner. There could be hundreds of shinobi in there for all we know..."

"I'm going over there." Kakashi interrupted.

"Of course you fucking are," Genma exasperated. "Because last time you ran after her it ended so well. You know, with you being frozen for three years."

"That may be true, but the last time I didn't trust her it ended with her almost being killed on a mission and then shipped of to the Akatsuki." It was a hard decision. On one hand, Genma was wretchedly correct, following her onto the battle field had got him dissolved and frozen. However on the other hand, not trusting her ability to socially maneuver and keep a secret was exactly what caused her to leave in the first place. Even if he didn't trust her planing, he couldn't bring himself to give up on her ability to be a damn good shinobi. She was his student, and therefore by definition must have everything under control.

He stood and Genma stood beside him. Kakashi sighed, "you don't have to come. You're not so close to her that you owe her your trust."

Genma looked at Kakashi with a hint of guilt, "well, I'm not sure how much closeness is required to start trusting her, but I can't see her willingly sacrificing our lives to further her mission. She's too pretty to be that cruel."

"That's amazingly shitty logic, how have you ever managed to live this long?" Asuma retorted.

"Does that mean you're staying here?" Genma said.

"Hell no! I can be resurrected, unlike you jokers. I wouldn't miss this for the world."

They walked out of the forest and crossed the sprawling clearing towards the mansion. The ANBU were instantly alerted and a sea of masked faces watched them approach. Five feet from the front door an ANBU appeared with one hand on his sword and the other held out to stop them.

"Don't act like you're going to pull that on us," Kakashi said threateningly. It wasn't his best bluff, but now wasn't the time for eloquence.

The bird-masked man was silent for a second, "actually, we though that you might attack," he said in a deep muffled voice. "But since that doesn't seem to be the case, I'm sure the elders will be happy to hear that you've agreed to their terms. Congratulations Hatake Kakashi."

"Thank you." Kakashi said, wondering what he had just agreed to.

"However, we are required to confiscate all your weapons and scrolls."

"You do realize that I don't need weapons or scrolls to kill you."

"Don't ruin my chance to show off my obedience. Something I hope you will keep in mind in regard to my skills as a captain," the guard said said lightly.

"Uh, well done," Kakashi said as he took the Fanged Vengeance scroll out of his pocket and destroyed it with a puff of fire Jutsu. Every nearby ANBU suddenly dropped into an offensive stance. "You can have everything but that," Kakashi said, silently irritated that he would eventually have to spend the hour and a half writing a new one.

They were meticulously searched from head to toe, which only Genma enjoyed. When the captain was satisfied that they had been stripped of everything that could be considered even remotely dangerous, short of their brains, they were led though the low archway and into the building.

There was a strange tension among them as they were escorted up to the third floor, nerves peaked by the unknown. Kakashi wondered how Riba could enjoy operating like this, the lack of reliable intel and a solid plan was killing him.

The bird-masked ANBU knocked on a set of heavy double doors until a man dressed entirely in white cracked one open just far enough to peak through. His head was completely covered by an alabaster colored mask, a light colored version of the Uindo assassin's uniform. From his build, Kakashi was fairly sure that it was Sasuke, but thought better of calling him out. It was Riba's game now, and he had no intention of saying anything that might hinder her success. He would be fluid, and follow her cues.

"Kachi and his guards can come in," Sasuke said in a muffled voice. He looked at the ANBU guard, "you're dismissed."

The room was dark, illuminated only by a series of candle operas that sat in the corners. One of the two elders sat at the head of the room, his younger sister was nowhere to be seen. Asuma and Genma stood along the back wall with Sasuke while Kakashi went to sit on one of the two mats in front of the elder. He looked at the back of the young woman sitting on the other mat. Her light blue dress was soft and feminine, and she seemed so frail. Kakashi looked closer and almost had a heart attack when he realized that it was Riba. She sprung up and threw her arms around him, burying her head in his chest with a light squeal of joy.

Kakashi's mind ground to a halt, but he forced himself to embrace her anyway. It was as if someone had removed Riba from her body and replaced her with an entirely different person. Uchiha Uindo Riba was fearsome, an elite shinobi and commander. She was cleaver, determined, and rebellious. Her aura exuded Uchiha arrogance and her personality made her appear even more ruthlessly intimidating than she already was. She was strong, and he had always been attracted to that. But the woman before him was wholly different, small and meek, like a strong wind might blow her away. She had her sword with her, but it's black sheath clashed with her dress and sat awkwardly on her back, looking a bit like a noble girl who had picked up her daddy's weapon and was playing shinobi.

It was unspeakably awkward, but Kakashi gave her an intimate embrace, thankful that his mask hid his look of repulsion. She was very unattractive to him like this, but if she could illicit that reaction in someone who knew her as well as he did, it meant that her act was flawless.

He tried to analyze the situation and find any hint of how she wanted him to act. What was the game? Where did he fit in her manipulations? He replayed everything that had happened since he entered the building. The ANBU escorted him to the door where Sasuke had said: "Kakashi and his guards can come in."

_That's not right_. Sasuke hadn't said "Kakashi," he said "Kachi." At the time Kakashi had disregarded it, thinking that Sasuke had misspoken, but maybe it was intentional.

"Sit," Kakashi commanded as he pushed Riba away. She instantly went back to her cushion and sat down, following his order to the letter. No protest, retort, or argument. He paused, Riba actively bucked against anyone who even attempted to be condescending to her. Her Uchiha-Hyuuga pride wouldn't allow her to submit, but Ria's would. Ria was weak, naive, submissive, and would do whatever Kachi commanded. He sat down on the cushion next to her, confident that he was beginning to understand the shape of her deception.

"I'm glad to see that you've accepted our proposal," the elder said with a crooked smile.

"Yes..."

"Would you mind excusing you lover so that we can discuss the details in private?"

Kakashi gave Riba a sideways glare, "leave."

She was out the door in a flash with her apprentice close behind. The door had barely shut when the elder began to laugh, "oh Kakashi, you would have saved us all a lot of pain had you told us about the power you have over her sooner."

"I'm sorry I didn't, since it has obviously changed everything," he baited.

"Putting your past betrayal behind us, my sister and the lords will arrive soon to appoint you as the Nanadaime. Which you understand will last only as long as you follow our orders and maintain your influence over Riba, and therefore Uindo."

"Yes," Kakashi bit out. He should have known, the elders had all but executed him over sleeping with Riba, yet were willing to throw all their supposed principles out the window the minute that his sex life benefited them. Internally he was blazing in anger, he truly hated them.

"Good, then your first task will be to have Riba sign a treaty with Konoha linking our militaries. We will then begin to attack the other four shinobi nations. Uindo holds the strongest fighting force in the world, and with their backing we will take over all the remaining shinobi lands. Since Uindo doesn't seem to care about the welfare of the five nations, it shouldn't take much to convince the High Council to support her decision."

'I'll get right on it..."

"Strange how someone who is so skilled and powerful could turn out to be as emotionally weak as she is. Just out of curiosity, is she as easy as all the other sluts you sleep with?"

"Yes..." It was the hardest thing Kakashi had ever be forced to say. He felt righteously indignant, not just for Riba, but all the women in Konoha who were kind and caring but being looked down upon just because they wanted a little pleasure. The old man was talking about them like they were the scourges of society, even though they were the same people who healed the sick and fed the poor. This man wasn't on Konoha's side, only his own. Naruto was right, he needed to die.

The elder's old fingers sifted through a stack of papers at his feet, "your letters don't mention any other forms of compensation, so can I assume that all you're after is Riba's body and control of mission assignments?"

Kakashi eyes the papers, the handwriting was an exact copy of his own. He knew that Riba could forge his signature, but struggled to recall when she had copied the rest of his handwriting as well. Maybe she had extrapolated it from a sample, he'd have to get her to teach him that later. "There's nothing else I want, just what I asked for in the letters."

"Then in accordance with your requests, Asuma and Genma will immediately be reassigned as your body guards. Make sure that they attend the ceremony so the lords know who will be associated with you. You may go to the room at the end of the hall and get on your Kage robe and I'll meet you in there once my sister and the lords arrive. Don't worry, ceremony will be quick."

_You have no idea. _"Yes sir," Kakashi said as he stood up.

"Oh, and one more thing. Good job on the haircut, you look much more like a Kage and less like an introverted slob."

"Thank you sir," Kakahi said as walked across the room and out the door with Genma and Asuma close behind.

They stood silently in the hallway, shocked but to afraid to speak as they were most certainly being watched. Riba ran up to the them, staring at Kakashi with total admiration. She looked enamored with him, as if he were a god. Kakashi looked over at Sasuke just to advert his eyes from her uncomfortable glaring, but felt even worse looking at a blank white silhouette of a person, his absence of facial features was just as awkward as Riba's concentrated ones.

Feeling the need to escape, Kakashi bound down the hall. Riba scuttled behind, her heels making soft click-clack sounds on the polished wooden floor. An ANBU member wearing an accented raccoon mask stopped them at the door to the ceremony room. Kakashi, Genma, Asuma, and Sasuke were admitted without question, but he held Riba back and demanded that she give him her sword. Asking her to turn over her sword was like asking her to chop off her arm, it wasn't going to happen. Kakashi watched for a moment to see what she would do, but she just stood still, vacantly looking at the ANBU guard.

"Get rid of it," Kakashi interjected, suddenly catching on.

She teleported it away, much to the ANBU guard's astonishment.

"Don't worry, she won't bring it back unless I order her to," Kakashi lied.

"Oh, that won't be necessary. As a precaution, the ceremony room blocks the use of chakra."

"Mmm," Kakashi responded as he grabbed Riba's arm and lead her inside, unceremoniously shutting the door in the ANBU guard's face. The guard had been right though, the minute they stepped into the room Kakashi could feel his chakra control fading. Apparently Riba would have to assassinate the elders with improvised weapons, or her hands. This was going to get messy.

A round table sat in the center of the sparse room, and a neatly folded white cloth with red accents sat on one of the seats. Kakashi slipped the robe on and sat down, feeling uncomfortable wearing the uniform of a position that he loathed accepting. He longed for Riba to get her mission over with before he was expected to actually start making decisions.

Genma and Asuma stood on either side of his chair, playing their roles without question. Riba sat down beside him with Sasuke standing close behind, resting his gloved hand on her shoulder possessively. Kakashi breathed deep, enjoying Sasuke's silence, knowing that it wouldn't last.

He looked over at Riba, she was looking down at the table like a small child who wanted to melt into the shadows and disappear. He sat with his elbows on the table and his head in his hands for hours, or at least it felt that way without _Icha Icha_ to entertain him.

Eventually the elders and three of Konoha's more influential lords strode in, haughty and impatient. Their brightly colored robes looked more cheap and flashy than noble, and their attempts to use makeup to hide their age only made their winkled skin look even more apparent. Kakashi mused at the the mental image of the old men standing front of a mirror, feverishly applying blush. The elder's sat opposite to Kakashi, with the lords on either side.

"Could we offer you a drink?" The elder sister asked.

"Of the strongest thing you've got."

She called for the ANBU outside he door and ordered him to fetch someone from the kitchen. A few minutes later, a lanky waiter came in an began clumsily pouring a gold laced liquid into crystal glasses. Kakashi snatched a glass from the man's hand without so much as an upward glance and downed its contents in a single long swallow. By the time he was on his second glass, the lords had already appointed him Hokage and had begun to slather him in compliments. How it could even be considered a ceremony was beyond him, it seemed more like an opportunity to drink expensive liquor. Tsunade had probably loved it.

Kakashi nodded absently at the chatter. _One alone, two as a couple. _Obviously Riba had needed him in to act as a vehicle to get the elders together in one place. He wondered if he should stop drinking just in case she also expected him to help with the massacre.

A cracking sound made Kakashi flinch. He looked over just in time to see a broken glass gipped tightly in a white gloved hand. In an instant, two ANBU ran into the room and tackled Sasuke to the ground.

_Sasuke you idiot,_ Kakashi thought as he turned to watch the spectacle. He hoped that the ANBU would consider Sasuke's shameful little display an attempt to make an improvised weapon and throw him out.

The guards grabbed his white mask and ripped it from his head. Long brown hair spread haphazardly onto the ground and white eyes darted around the room. Silence reigned as everyone looked down at Neji.

Kakashi stared blankly, shocked and slow to process what was happening. He had entirely assumed that it had been Sasuke following Riba around, there was no reason for it not to be. Kakashi shook his head and tied to regain his senses. The ANBU guards were frozen in place and everyone was beginning to gasp and run over.

He looked over at Riba who was ginning feline and radiating dark energy that was unaffected by the forces protecting the room, which had apparently been designed only to disrupt human chakra. Her Sharingan was focused unblinkingly on the ANBU guards.

"Thief!" a masculine voice shouted. Kakashi turned around just in time to see a kuni be pulled out from under the elder bother's robe and slid across his throat. In a flash the sister fell to the same fate. The lords were no match for the skilled waiter who cut them down like lambs to the slaughter. He swiftly grabbed the elders and wrapped them in scrolls that dissolved and stored their bodies.

Kakashi watched the man in awe, having almost entirely failed to notice him before that moment. His long blonde hair was covered in blood and his cloths stretched as he breathed hard, the stiff cloth no longer masking his muscular frame. Hard blue eyes looked down at Kakashi's robes, and a sly grin curled, Sasuke's obnoxious grin. He laughed condescendingly at Kakashi as he ran around the table and disappeared into the hall.

Kakashi couldn't believe it, Riba has played him as well as her targets. He had assumed that she was the assassin, but she was just a decoy. Sasuke was the one who Naruto had ended up hiring. Suddenly it all made sense, Souverign were only sent to kill Kage, but her apprentice would be a different story.

Konoha assassins usually snuck in under the cover of dark or posed as a newly hired guard, which would be believable give their build and skills. But Uindo assassins were fluid into an empty glass; the right cloths, Jutsu, and manipulation, had probably let Sasuke slip right into a job opening for a lowly waiter. An innocent and meek looking blonde with pleading blue eyes and clumsy mannerisms. Too unremarkable to be noticed.

"Gentlemen," Riba said in her velvety calm voice, her personality restored, "if I may make a suggestion. You may want to use your newly acquired position to havre Naruto and Tsunade. released"

"Okay, but what about them?" Kakashi asked as he pointed at the ANBU.

"They believe that the lords got into an argument with the elders over how power was to be distributed. The elder brother stabbed the lords to death with a kuni that he had smuggled into the room. Then they lit the room on fire and ran."

"Fire?" Asuma asked.

Riba ginned wickedly, "you should be running."


	14. Icha Icha Return

Disclaimer: I own Uindo not Naruto.

...

_The newly reappointed elders fled the nation following the appointment of Hatake Kakashi as the Nanakage. Three were killed in the ensuing massacre, all members of the Lord's class. Unfortunately, their bodies were destroyed in a fire that incinerated the elder's estate. A memorial service will be held on Friday. _

_The ANBU have reported that the elder's bodies were found on the coast of the south sea, amongst wreckage of a passenger vessel. Authorities believe that the elders escaped with close to half of the treasury and various historical artifacts, most of which are believed to have sunk with the ship. Recovery attempts have so far been unsuccessful, but a statement from the Rokudaime assures us that the search will be continue once the economic situation in Konoha has improved. No word as to when that will be._

Kakashi closed his newspaper an sat it on his lap, _scandal is stronger than truth._ Sasuke and Riba had certainly outdone themselves. They had even got him back into Konoha, and as a Hokage no less, making him feel a sliver of guilt for constantly criticizing their manipulation training. It was an amazing skill, when not being actively used against him that is.

He leaned against the trunk of the only tree in the training grounds and looked over the flower covered field. The sun had peaked in the sky, it was almost time to meet her.

He walked the sort distance to the Uchiha compound and over to the only occupied mansion. A thin layer of dust covered the usually clean porch. They had apparently been to busy lately to tidy up. Kakashi gently knocked on the door, waited a few minutes, then knocked again. He heard some shuffling and eventually Riba answered, zipping up her wide collared shirt and looking puzzled.

"Kakashi, it's noon," she said irritably as she ran her fingers though her disheveled hair.

"I was supposed to meet you a noon so we could train together."

"Which is why I was expecting you to show up around two."

"Well, it's important for a Hokage to be prompt I suppose. Here, these are for you," he held up a small bouquet of yellow flowers.

Her expression softened as she took the flowers and held them up to he nose, visibly pleased with the scent, "oh Kakashi, they're so lovely!"

The muffled sound of footsteps preceded Sasuke as he walked up behind Riba to see who was at the door. His hair was sticking out at weird angles and he was struggling to button up his pants.

Kakashi grinned mirthfully, pleased that he had obviously interrupted something, "have a nice morning Sasuke?"

"What are you doing with those weeds?" Sasuke asked as he eyed the bouquet. "Kakashi, you didn't bring her these did you?"

"Weed?" Riba asked, looking up at Sasuke.

_Haha Sasuke, foiled again_, Kakashi mused. _Weed_ was apparently one of the few words that Riba didn't know.

Sasuke smirked and rattled off a few sentences in her native language. Kakashi hadn't considered the possibility that Sasuke had learned Uindo, and silently berated himself for failing to draw the conclusion. Though he didn't understand what they were saying, Riba's narrowing stare suggested that she wasn't pleased.

"So Kakashi probably got them from the training ground one. They overgrow and take over the field every summer. I'm surprised that the grounds keepers haven't cleared them out yet," Sasuke said.

"Oh," she said dryly. "Thank you Sasuke."

"I live to serve in every way that you crave," he replied suggestively as he shot Kakashi a patronizing glare.

"Thank you for the lovely gift Kakashi." She handed Sasuke the bouquet, "could you please put these somewhere?"

"In the trash?"

She sighed, "Kakashi and I will be sparring in the training grounds if you need us for anything."

Sasuke waited until Riba tuned her back and visibly crushed the delicate flowers in his hand as he waved to Kakashi, "have a good time. I hope she accidentally kills you."

"You too Sasuke, I hope you have a good time finishing off the morning with your hand," Kakashi replied with a happy eye crease.

Riba grabbed Kakashi's arm and pulled him out of the Uchiha compound before a fight erupted. They walked casually down the street, stopping periodically so that Kakashi could answers the flood of questions that random passersby had for the new Hokage. Mostly he just referred them directly to Naruto.

"You know," Kakashi said as they passed Ramen Ichiraku, "maybe we should get something to eat before we beat the hell out of each other."

"Don't bother, your just going to throw it up."

"Yeah, I used to tell that lie to my students, possibly you too, I don't remember." He grabbed her hand and led her under the low hanging banners and to the nearest seat.

Two bowls of Miso soup and some conversation later and Kakashi was convinced that he had finally constructed the perfect date. He was even more please when he saw his other favorite student, Sakura, plop onto the empty seat next to Riba.

"Riba, sorry to interrupt your, uh, date? But I think it would only be right to tell you."

Riba swallowed the soup in her mouth, "tell me what?"

"That I just killed your apprentice."

"What? Why?!" Riba said in shock.

"Because he deserved it. I've been waiting for years to take a swing at him."

"What exactly did you do?"

"I knocked on the door and when he answered I immediately punched him in the throat."

"Okay then," she replied calmly.

"By the way, my boyfriend and I are going to The Little Boxer later. You and Kakashi are welcome to join us if you'd like."

"That would be lovely," Riba said with a smile. "Would that be alright with you Kakashi?"

"Um, sure," Kakashi replied.

"Great! I'll see you guys later then," Sakura said as she stood up and bounced happily back onto the street.

Riba ate the vegetables in her soup, silently enjoying her meal as if nothing had happened.

"Isn't it your duty to go rescue him?" Kakashi asked.

"Rescue him from what? He's already dead," she put down her spoon. "I recently accepted him as my partner, therefore he qualifies for priority resurrection. I'll teleport his body back to Uindo after we're done. In a week he'll be back on his feet, good as new. Though, I am interested to know why Sakura killed him in the first place."

"She loved him for a long time, then he left the village and tried to kill her."

"Sasuke is _that_ guy? Good to know."

"How can anything about that entire segment of her life be considered good?"

"Because if he hadn't treated her so badly, she never would have sworn off the bad boys and ended up with Naruto."

"Won't Sasuke be upset once he comes back to life?"

"Not as much as he will when I lecture him about always being aware of his surroundings."

Kakashi scooped up his last bit of tofu in his soup. He debated trying to seal a few pieces from her bowl but thought better of it. She would probably catch him, and that could lead to inappropriate roughhousing, "does that mean that I get you all to myself for a week?"

"Well, you and the ANBU."

"And The Little Boxer?"

"Last time we went to The Little Boxer you got really drunk and assumed that we slept together."

"Well maybe you shouldn't have come on to me, in the dark, wearing that skimpy Geisha outfit."

"I didn't..."

"And then took me back to your apartment and undressed me."

"Don't flatter yourself, I didn't know where your apartment was and you were coved in sake. Your cheap old tricks weren't that impressive."

"Which is why I have a whole new set of cheap tricks to try on you," he threw a few crumpled bills on the table and took her hand, intertwining their fingers, "come on honey, rum awaits us."

"I'm not sure if I want to go, how do I know that you're not recording everything we do for another edition of _Golden Eyes_?

"Hmm, that's actually a good idea..."

_The End_


End file.
